The Holy Spirit Speaks…But you’ve Gotta Listen.
Diane and I were doing some decorating on our entryway yesterday, and part of it included some hat hooks and a little rack from which she could hang a purse. We placed the hats, some Panamas we’d brought back from missions trips, then hung a tan leather bag she never used but looked great with the hats, and stepped back to look. It was perfect. Then we decided to go out to eat.
“Do you have my keys?” Diane asked. “They’re not in my purse.” (She was talking about the black one she always carries.)
I’d been the last one to drive, so I thought it through. “No, I drove home with my set and put them on the hanger in the closet. Maybe yours are in there too.”
I looked. “No, they’re not there.”
“I didn’t think so; I never put them anywhere but in this purse.”
I glanced down at the bag we’d just hung on the rack. Seemed like maybe an impression from the Holy Spirit, but then that was out of the question since she’d just brought that one in from the bedroom and never used it.
We’d come back from church earlier, and I remembered seeing them on the seat there. “Oh no, I said, I think we might’ve left them at church.”
She shrugged. Well, that’s a bummer. I guess we’ll just have to call the office tomorrow and go get them.
On the way out of the door my eyes went back to that tan bag. This time I spoke it out. “Is there any way they could be in there?”
“No,” she said, shaking her head. “I’ve never even used that purse.” But then she reached into it and…you guessed it: there they were. “How is that even possible?” she asked.
“No idea, but the Lord kept telling me that.
We both laughed about it and headed out to eat, but the experience underscored a lesson for me: The Holy Spirit is always speaking, but you’ve gotta listen.
Another time I was in Mexico, on the last night of a missions outreach. I stepped out on the beach just to listen to the waves before going on in to go to bed. Before hopping in the sack I noticed a few jejenne bites on my ankles. (Jejennes are little mosquito-like flies that hang out on plants near the sand.)
The next morning while showering, I looked down at the little bites, and an unusual thought occurred, “You should was those. You don’t wash your ankles enough.” But I dismissed it. After all, all of the shower water all there anyway, so they’re bound to get clean on their own.
A week or so later my lower legs swelled up like sausages and hurt so badly I wound up in the emergency room. After 4 days in the hospital it was confirmed: I’d gotten a staph infection – very dangerous. The staphylococcus bacteria had entered my body through the wounds left by the insect bites.
That was when I realized that the Holy Spirit had been talking to me, trying to save me from weeks of pain and recovery. But again, I hadn’t been paying attention.
Sometimes we miss the voice of the Holy Ghost because we assume the ideas He places into our minds are our own thoughts. That’s because He live within us, so his voice also comes from within, and seems very normal and natural.
The spiritual gifts of the Word of Knowledge and Word of Wisdom work the same way. Often when I’m speaking at a church, I’ll glance at individuals and seem to “know” things about them. And when that knowledge, or those ideas come, they seem like they’re just my own, but they’re not. As I share them with the people for whom I’ve received them, it turns out they’re information I could never know on my own. Those ideas that popped into my head were from the Holy Spirit.
Now I’m sharing all of that to say this: Jesus promised that the Spirit of Truth would come, and that He would speak to us. (Jn. 16:13) But as the Old-timers used to say, “The Holy Spirit is a Gentleman,” i.e. He speaks softly and never forces Himself upon us. 1st Kings 19:11-12 describes it well. Elijah received a word from God, and it came like this: Then The Lord said, “Go out, and stand on the mountain before.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice.” And it turned out that the still small voice, what the Hebrew describes as a “delicate, whispering voice,” was the voice of the Lord.
So If the Holy Spirit’s voice is often delicate and small, how can we hear it?
Well, first of all, we have to tune in. In the Book of Revelation, the Apostle John said he heard God’s voice loudly and clearly, but of course he was on a desert island, and “In the Spirit on the Lord’s Day.” And I think that being in the Spirit part is important. We don’t hear God’s Spirit much when we’re in the flesh, negative, griping, complaining, angry, whining, etc. But when we’re walking in the Spirit, as Nancy Dufresne put it, when we’re “in the flow,” His voice seems much clearer to us. That’s because in those times we’re on His wavelength, so to speak. We’re “in the spirit, as He always is.”
And secondly, we’d be wise to quit assuming that every thought that comes to mind is our own. Yeah sure, most times they are, but occasionally our thoughts can be pressures, fears, or cares from the evil one, and yet at other times they can be the loving, uplifting, encouraging, and problem-solving voice of the Lord. And of course, spending time in your Bible and in a positive spiritual atmosphere can help you discern that.
But the bottom line of what I wanted to share with you today is simply this: God loves you and wants to talk to you, to encourage you and to help you. And He does this through His Word, and also through the Holy Spirit who lives within you. And since He lives within you, He will often speak to you in a way that seems very natural and unassuming. So my advice? Do your best to stay in the Word and the flow of the fruit of the Spirit…and listen. Pay attention. That still small Voice can help you avoid pitfalls, help you navigate tricky situations, encourage you, and bring great blessings into your life.