Stepping In

Friends, I’ll let you in on a secret. This blog, it’s not mine. While I’ve been the writer to-date, I believe there will be multiple writers in the future. Stories that will be told that are not mine. Others who will feel a tug, feel something inside of them encouraging them to share their story. If this is you, I encourage you to press in, begin writing. He may intend for you to share it or he may just want to speak to you through the writing. It may be the beginning of hearing from God. He may be wanting to reveal something to you about an experience you went through. He may want to show you how he saw that situation. Based on my experience, he will want to speak love and truth over you that only he can. 

For those familiar with the blog, I often speak of adventures with God. Hearing his voice and taking steps in faith. That is what this blog is. Each day when I sit down to write, I start first in prayer. My prayer is this: “Heavenly Father, thank you for today. I give my day to you, my work to you. Whatever I do, may it be for you. God, what is on your heart?”.

From there, I wait. Often, I will hear what sounds like my own voice almost immediately answering that question. Today what I heard, “I want them to know how much I love them.” As I sit here now, tears well in my eyes, my heart overwhelmed with His love for you. His desire to breakthrough all the lies from the enemy. That if you could only know how much he loves you, how much he sees you, how much he wants you to hear His voice, so he can not only speak to you, but also move in your life. 

Friends, we have an enemy. He is the Father of lies. (John 8:44) He is likely giving you a list of reasons why what was written above isn’t true. Or painting God as someone distant or who has let you down because of something unbelievably painful you experienced. The enemy doesn’t want you to believe in God, to hear from God, to have a close relationship with Him. The enemy doesn’t want you to hear the voice of God because when you do, you will hear kindness, encouragement, forgiveness, unconditional love. You will hear that you are not alone. You will hear that you are loved to a level impossible to comprehend. You will not be torn down. You will not be made to feel guilt, shame, fear. (Psalm 34:22) The enemy condemns. Our Father, he will scoop you up, hold you, comfort you, and tell you over and over again just how much he loves you.  

There is one catch and there’s only one. It requires spending time with him. Opening yourself to him. Seeking him. God is so good, so loving, so gracious. He loves baby steps. He loves when he sees us take a step towards him, no matter how small or how big that step is. Friends, I feel in urgency in this message. That someone out there is reading this and hurting. That tears are welling from pain you’re experiencing. That our Father wants to comfort you, to take your pain and give you hope. To take the darkness the enemy is trying to drown you in and lift you up into His light and love. 

Will you do me a favor? Will you give yourself 10 minutes with God today? If you’ve never done this before, below are a few ways of how you can do this: 

Starting with a question

Find a quiet space. This could be in your room, on a walk around the block, in the car. You can pray by simply starting a conversation with God. An example is below:

“God, I don’t know how to do this, but I know the process and the words don’t matter to you. You just want to hear from me. I feel ______. I don’t want to carry this anymore. I want to give it to you. What do you want me to know?”

From there, wait and listen. Write down the thoughts that come to your mind. If it comes immediately, write it down. If it doesn’t come immediately, that’s ok. Rest in knowing he is there and there’s no work you have to do. Instead of words, you may get an image or a song that comes to mind. Write that down as well. God speaks in many ways and will speak in a way that is specific to how he made you. One way I’ve found that can kickstart the conversation is asking God, “Do you love me?”. He will respond and it will be in love. That’s one way you can begin to identify what his voice sounds like.

Starting with a verse

Another way is to read a verse from the Bible. A verse from Deuteronomy, 31:8, is below: 

 “The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”

Read the verse and write down the words that stand out to you. Then you can enter into a conversation with God by asking “God, are you here?”. Write down what you hear. A follow-up question you can ask “What do you want me to know?”. I encourage you to write down what you hear and reflect on it.

Starting with a song

The song, Found in You, by Josh Baldwin has been on repeat as I’ve been writing. Today was the first time I heard it and I believe God had it planned to go with this post. You can find it here. I encourage you to find a space where you can close your eyes and listen to the lyrics. After you’ve heard the song, write down what’s on your heart. From there you can enter into prayer. There is a lyric in the song “Turn my ashes into beauty, You have made me, I am found in You.”. The prayer can be “God, there is pain in my life. There are wounds I want to let go of. Will you take the ashes of what was and turn them into beauty? What do you want me to know about the future you have planned for me?” I encourage you to write what you hear. 

We have another post on hearing God’s voice and if you haven't had a chance to read it, I encourage you to check it out and try the listening experiment. There is so much hope, peace, healing, joy that is available once you enter into relationship with God. He wants to speak his love over you. In prayer, through the Bible, in relationship with Him. I encourage you, step in today. Know that I am praying for you. And, if you find God encouraging you to share the results of your prayer time, an encounter you had, a story, I would love to hear from you. Simply email blog@calvarylg.com.

Praying blessings of hearing his voice and knowing how much you are loved.