Here's a quick challenge for you... Try and sit still without thinking about or doing anything for 60 seconds. Go.
The first time I attempted this, I think I made it 4.5 seconds before my mind began thinking about other things. I am now up to 9.5 seconds before I'm distracted. I am making serious progress, my friends.
This challenge is a result of an interesting question God recently asked me. I was pondering God's long term plans for my life when my thoughts were suddenly interrupted. The heavens didn't part, nor did I hear a booming voice from heaven, but the question was clear. He asked, "Gabe, have you noticed that most of your questions for me deal with 'doing'?"
That simple question had me thinking for days. As usual, he was right. Most of my interaction with God had been centered around the idea of doing work for him and asking about his future plans (work) for me. I am convinced that we should ask these questions often, but I am also confident that he wants more than just our actions and our work. He wants us to stop all the "doing" and "be".
In response to this revelation, I have started practicing a new habit. I sit before God with a clear heart and a clear mind and make myself available for him to speak. I don't think about anything. I don't do anything. I force myself to sit there and be fully present. Most men know how challenging this seemingly simple task is. It's almost as if we need a bull riding buzzer to beep after the 8 second mark to celebrate our accomplishment.
The voice of the Holy Spirit speaks in very personal ways, but he is always presenting truth. This is the identifier we should look for. Again, I've never heard anything audible. It's more of an impression on my heart, or a thought or train of thoughts that enter my mind. The common denominator is that I recognize it as being from God based on the undeniable amount of truth that the statement contains. How do I know it's truth? I recognize it from the Scriptures. I tell people that it's extremely important to spend plenty of time reading the Scriptures in order to easily recognize the voice of the Holy Spirit. Ultimately, they are revealing the exact same thing--truth.
I realize that by simply stating you can learn to hear God's voice, I have landed myself in the "crazy camp" to some. You see people all the time doing bizarre and harmful things because, in their words, "God told them to." I see how some people have arrived at their "any normal person doesn't believe God speaks" theory. But, do the actions of a few flaky or truly disturbed people really disqualify God from being a deeply personal God? Isn't this the same God who was nailed to a wooden cross and endured excruciating pain to demonstrate his desire for personal relationship? What is personal relationship without personal communication?
I am currently pursuing my master's degree in counseling at a local university, and part of the degree program is to study mental health disorders. During our last class, my professor stated that some perfectly sane Christians can be diagnosed with "schizophrenia" because they claim to hear the voice of God. Interesting.
I wonder what Adam and Eve would have been diagnosed with; they claimed they were tricked by a talking snake. Moses surely would have been diagnosed with some kind of disorder; he claimed God spoke to him from a burning bush. Noah may have been the person tagged with the most mental disorders as he built a large ark in the middle of the desert announcing that God was going to save the world through him. Oh, and don't forget about Mary. She claimed that she was pregnant--but that she was still a virgin. Huh?
Maybe learning to hear the whisper of the Holy Spirit isn't that strange after all. But, even if it is, it's quite alright. We "crazies" are in good company. I can picture the look on their faces as they mockingly asked, "Aren't you really Joseph's son? Crazy man."
60 seconds...Go.
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