"Tell of how I worked"

 Do you ever get perplexed when people talk about hearing God speak? Or are you one of those who clearly hears from the Lord? I have been in both places. But for the past few years, I feel I have come to recognize his voice more clearly. I actually think it takes practice  to hear the Lord. Last week the pastor at our church said something to the affect of this "if you wonder if it's God speaking to you--look at what it is you are being called to do. If it's something that you can ONLY do with him by your side, its likely you are hearing from the Lord!"

 Sometimes I am still  in awe that I can actually hear God speak. Now don't get me wrong--there are many days I question if its really his voice. Or I have those other days where I want to scream out to him  "please say something, anything. Has our phone connection gone dead? I need to hear something!!"

 You will here me talk a lot about hearing God's voice on this blog, becasue really, thats how God has worked in my life so much. In my darkest moments he has spoken. In my desperate days, he has spoken. And when all else has failed me, he has worked...and spoken.

One really great way to hear the Lord speak is to actually talk to him. I don't mean just praying where your speaking to him--I mean a real conversation with him. Where you ask questions and wait for a reply.

The way this blog came to be, is because of God's words to me. Because I asked him some pretty straight forward questions.

Last spring, I took an equipping class at my church. But this was not just any class, this was a women's leadership class. A class that had been closed except by invite only  in the past, but now they had opened it up to see how it could grow more leaders in the women's ministry of the church.

I admit--I felt special being there---but for the life of me couldn't understand WHY I was there. I knew it had been orchestrated perfectly for me to attend this 4 week session, but I just didn't get it. Why did I need to learn more about women's ministry leadership? On the second class--our speaker gave us some homework. She told us to go home and talk to God about this class--she gave us some specific questions we were to ask him.
 So, with my journal and pen in my hand, I started to ask God some of these questions. ( I will share some, but not all..some are still a little private--even for me! )

Lord, why do you have me in this equip class? Why am I in a class on leadership?

....I am preparing you for your calling. Learn how to lead my people.

Lord, how can I can I possibly lead? My stuff/life is a jumbled mess!

Tell your story. The stories where I worked.

Lord who do I tell it to? How will that lead?  (thinking in my head, my story ain't leading anyone to anything except what NOT to do!!)

Show them me. Tell them how I healed you.  How I gave you freedom. Let them see me in you.

 And in the next moment, I put my pen down, and just looked at the words on the paper. And it was as if I was looking at a bible--I saw where I had written my questions in black ink and where the Lord had spoken, the words looked red. ( they were not really written in red but thats how it looked as I glanced at this documented conversation!) 

Now do I really think that the Lord has this calling on my life to go and speak to millions and lead others in some major significant lesson--no, I don't...at least not yet. But I do think he was telling me to do what I am doing now...telling my story. Sharing with people how he worked in my life. Because the thing is...I am not anything special. And if he can work in my life, he can work in yours. And if he can speak to me ( in what appears to be bright red ink!!), he can speak to you.


Wonder where he is at this low moment in your life--ask him.
 Wonder where he was in a past event that was maybe ugly and painful...ask him.
Wonder why you are in the place you are in, RIGHT now in life...ask him.

I truly believe he wants to tell us these things. He may speak it, he may show it in a picture, or he may say it through scripture...but just as he wants to know us, he wants us to know HIM.


-----LS