Month: January 2018

Is it God talking to me, or is it indigestion?  We really need to know the difference. Some would say that God doesn’t talk to people, or that we cannot know what God’s will is. To that I say, then why bother with God at all if we can’t know him and what he wants? I can already stumble and guess my way through things. So….

However, I’m not into living on the fly, so to speak. When making big decisions (or even little ones), I want to be sure I’m on the right track. While my life has not been perfect, and surely it was indigestion I was feeling a few times during my planning, I believe that God does help me. I believe there are a few things that any of us can use to “know” that our goals are truly God’s goals (his will) for our lives.

• It simply won’t leave you alone. By this I mean, when something stays on my mind and won’t go away, I know something’s up. Little things (and sometime big things) keep appearing/happening that lead back to it – my mind won’t let go of it. Like with Samuel (the prophet, not Perez) when he kept feeling like someone was calling his name while he was trying to sleep. Up and down. Up and down, trying to figure out what that voice was. Finally, Eli the priest said, and I paraphrase “this time simply say, ‘what is it, Lord. I’m listening.'” When we get that “something” that just won’t let go in our minds, we need to recognize that God may, indeed, be trying to get our attention.

 

• Crazy things fall into place. This ‘thing’ that keeps staying on your mind may seem crazy or impossible, exciting or maybe scary, then something happens that opens a door of possibility. For instance, I’m about to leave Texas and move back to my hometown of Kentucky to be close to my parents in their Golden Years.(I know!) It’s been on my mind for over a year. It seemed impossible. Crazy. No way. Then my husband’s work said, “Sure. You can work remotely from there!” Hmm. A couple of months later, my boss said, “You’ll teach remotely, one day a week!”  Whaaaaa! Then, my realtor says, we have about 3 buyers interested in your house THAT’S NOT EVEN ON THE MARKET YET!  So, yeah. You know, the animals start walking up to you 2 by 2.

 

• There’s peace that’s unexplainable. One thing I’ve learned is that, if there is confusion, strife, wringing of the hands, then something is off. But, when there is peace, then something is right. Seeing that God’s word says, “…they will go out with joy and be lead forth by peace…” Well, that’s always been a deal maker for me.

 

• It lines up with scripture. Finally, (and of course, if you do not believe the Bible, then this will not apply). There is no scripture that says, “thou shalt move to this state” or “thou shalt not buy that purse,” but there are many scriptures that deal with family and many that deal with finance, so I have something to gauge my plans on. We have to train our minds – fill them with the knowledge of God, THEN we will be able to…”prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.” Romans 12:2.

Our finite minds can, by no means, know everything there is to know about a situation, but when these 4 things are at work in a process, I have found it to be a good indicator that I’m on the right track. Have I been wrong before? Yep. Remember the indigestion possibility?  Still, I know I have a partner in planning whose mind is infinite – who knows the end from the beginning – who has numbered the hairs on my head; therefore, I keep moving forward.

Take a moment and be still. Is there something that keeps coming back to your thoughts? Something that you think about, especially when you have time to ponder? You should consider saying, “What is it, Lord? I’m listening.”

Have you ever had experiences like this? I’d love to hear about it in the comments below