God speaks. He speaks all the time. We simply need to learn to listen. I recently heard an excellent message about how God speaks, by David Gibbs, founder of Christian Law Association. I want to share three of the examples he gave us.
1. God speaks through the burning bush:
“And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.” Exodus 3:2
Although God mostly uses His Word to speak, sometimes God uses dramatic circumstances or extraordinary events to speak to us. For example, I remember falling asleep at the wheel late at night and going through both sets of rumble strips and miraculously I woke up right as I was about to crash down a steep embankment. I ended up back on the interstate and knew it was a second chance at life. God used this event to spark a mini revival in my life. I couldn’t believe I was alive and unharmed. I knew at that moment God had spared my life for a very important reason.
A near tragic circumstance can blow us back onto the right path or even just awaken us to the value of the path we’re on. I needed a reminder that God has given us an extraordinary opportunity called “life.” When I saw it flash before my eyes, I knew I’d been given a gift. Even now, as I remember and write these words, I feel the revival of gratefulness for this life of service to God. Even when I’m dog-tired and brain dead after a long day, I want to remember the extraordinary value that my life has on this earth when it is lived for God‘s glory!
This was a “burning bush” experience for me. Like the bush burned but was not consumed—my SUV, traveling at 70 m.p.h.—should have crashed into that ravine, but somehow it ended up back on the interstate. God’s voice couldn’t have been louder than if He had yelled, “Your life is precious and I’m giving you an extended chance to live it for my glory!!!” Wow—I’m so glad I’m here. I’m so glad God sparked new life into my walk with Him through this “burning bush” moment.
2. God speaks through a burning heart.
“I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?’ Then said I, ‘Here am I; send me.’” Isaiah 6:8
When we have a heart that burns with the purpose of glorifying God and carrying out the Great Commission, we hear God with a heart ready to spring into action. A burning heart means God speaks and we are ready to act. We have learned to live with the attitudes of Christ! What does this look like?
- We have a constant awareness of our great purpose and are ready to serve.
- Our countenance abounds with the fruit of God’s Spirit and speaks volumes without our lips saying a word. Our presence draws people into God’s presence .
- When we speak, we communicate with truth, love, passion and sincerity.
- We exemplify the winning attitudes of Christ that are so rare, powerful and beautiful that others want to know Him.
- We live wanting to be touched by God in every arena—family, work, church, friends, etc.
From each trial, each good time, and everywhere in between, we say to God, “here am I, send me!”
3. God speaks through burning hands.
After Mordecai gave Queen Esther the news of Haman’s decree to slaughter every Jewish person, he sent a further message to her:
“Do not think in your heart that YOU will escape in the king’s palace any more than all the other Jews. For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”
Then Esther sent her reply to Mordecai:
“Go, gather all the Jews who are present in Shushan, and fast for me; neither eat nor drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will fast likewise. And so I will go to the king, which is against the law; and if I perish, I perish!” Esther 4:13-16
Esther had burning hands; that is, a desire to serve God even if it meant her death. She was aware that to appear before the King without an invitation meant death. But she was willing to risk it all to save her people.
Are WE willing to risk it all to save souls?
Think about the people around you who may not know Jesus. Their eternal death is inevitable if they do not hear the Gospel. When we have hands which are on fire with the glorious purpose God has given us, we MUST serve. Fire keeps us moving—looking for someone to serve. A person with burning hands would rather do something than do nothing, or sit around criticizing those who ARE doing something.
Do you have a burning passion to bring God’s kingdom into the hearts of all mankind?
2 Responses
God’s is faithful.
Amen!