Blog #3: Chapter 1 Cont. How Does God Speak to Us? By Stacy Duplease of Stories by Stacy

Blog #3:


CHAPTER INFORMATION:
BOOK TITLE: The Book of Romans: Truth From Fiction Series Book 1
DATE: 21 October 2009 Wednesday
TYPE OF STORY FOR THIS CHAPTER: Non-Fiction
IT IS A NEW OR ON-GOING STORYLINE?: On-going (#3)
GENRE: Non-Fiction
LAST TIME THIS STORYLINE WAS USED: 19 October 2009 in Blogs #1 and 2

CHAPTER INFORMATION

You may wonder what this goofy lady is doing now. However, every blog will now have the above header. As you see each blog, it will make sense as to why it has the header. It will help us all to keep things straight. It's my organizational system now.

Please make note of the last line. It tells where to find the last time this portion of the storyline was used. That way, you can go back and re-read it if necessary.

If you have any questions now or as we go along, contact me from making a comment at the end of this blog or send me an email to: stacyduplease@storiesbystacy.com

Thank you. It should make more sense as we go along because you'll see I will jump from here to there and this will help you to know where I am and to catch up with whatever you may have missed.

HOW DOES GOD SPEAK TO US?
You may already know this answer, but it's always a good reminder so we can check our spiritual progress. However, it might be something you're struggling with and I hope this helps.

How can you hear from God?
How can you know it's God from which you hear?
How can you know for sure that what you hear is the truth?
How does God speak to us?

The answer to the questions above is quite simple--and complex. Let's start with the simple first. God can speak to us in a number of ways, but I'm going to first describe the most fundamental ways:

1. God speaks to us through the Word (the Holy Bible).

2. God speaks to us through prayer.

God speaks to us when we still ourselves enough to be able to listen and doing #1-2 is how we do that. In other words, if we aren't in the Word, and aren't in prayer, we are far less likely to be in a position to hear the Lord. It's us who are at fault if we don't hear Him because we fail to be in the Bible and listening and talking with Him.

I don't know about you, but I find life can be a tricky business. It can present me with obstacles, but I also somehow tend to make life harder on myself. Hence, I find I need to hear God often or I can easily get off course. It's the only way I can get through life. When I try to do it on my own, life becomes quite messy. Therefore, I've learned it's absolutely essential for me to be in the Word daily (preferably all day long and I'll explain what that looks like later in another blog) and in prayer without ceasing.

If I only pray or only read the Scripture, my life gets fouled up as well. Too much of one can be deadly spiritually speaking, of course. Everything needs to be in balance in this regard and notice the balance. Both. Non-stop. Daily. all day. 24/7. Period.

How is this even feasible? You may ask. You also may think I'm a nut. I am. But, not in this specific case. You may also think I'm a holier-than-though religious, super-spiritual chick. That is not true either. Not at all. But, I've tried to sabotage my life in many ways and have made several mistakes. I also have misunderstood the faith. I've tried everything as far as the Christian spiritual disciplines and have complicated the you-know-what out of my faith. Consequently, I've learned the ways to SIMPLIFY it and have learned the ways to apply the ancient text of the Holy Bible to my life today. I'll share my lessons with you.

So, no. If I can do this, trust me, you can. I'm not a perfect-Christian by any stretch of the imagination and I'm a fiction write (so I have quite the imagination). But, I try to please God by bringing Him the glory.

There are other ways to hear God as well. I'll list them in a moment. However, if you are in the Bible, and are in prayer, I guarantee you've already heard Him talk to you in these ways. If you hear the same message repeatedly, take heed immediately. He's trying His best to get your attention and talk with you without having to skywrite His message to you. Listen and respond instantly and without hesitation, even if it doesn't make sense.

How else does God speak to us?

3. Through others. They'll say something He's always told us, for example.

4. Through a sermon--in person, on radio, or CD/mp3.

5. Through a praise song.

6. Through His creation. Sunrises. Sunsets. Babies. Birds flying. The Rocky Mountains. You get the idea.

HOW DOES GOD SPEAK?
Rarely is it in an audible voice.

Usually, He tells you it in your heart and then you hear it in your mind.

HOW DO YOU KNOW IT'S GOD?
1. It lines up with His Word. In other words, you'll find it in the Bible and it does not go against His Word.

2. When you hear it in prayer, you sense a peace inside and don't feel troubled by it (for the most part).

3. You'll hear it repeatedly and in many different ways and in different settings and at different times.

4. It will apply to where you are in your life today and will make sense that what He says fits.

If you feel doubtful, take a look at numbers 1-4 in this section. Then, remember that doubt and fear only come from the enemy, the devil. If you doubt, fear, or have anxiety, it doesn't necessarily mean what you heard is wrong. Check #1-4 again in this section. If any or all don't line up, it's a false message. Kindly disregard at that point.

I hope this helps.
 
By Stacy Duplease
of Stories by Stacy