Good cell phone reception is a deal breaker when it comes to who you are going to buy your services from. If they don’t service your area, why even bother?
When I need to hear from God or spend time in His presence, I find myself wondering “where can I find the most bars?”
Don’t get me wrong, God is everywhere and anywhere all the time. But just like when the glory of the Lord filled the temple after King Solomon dedicated it in the Old Testament (2 Chronicles 7), so I find that God sometimes chooses to make His presence more concentrated in certain times and in certain places.
I also find that although God can speak to us anywhere, sometimes it’s easier to hear from God in a place we have heard from Him before.
I call these spiritual “hotspots.”
When I was younger in my faith journey with Christ, it always brought special meaning for me to go back to the area where I started a relationship with Him as an adult. I would often go there to pray or simply just sit in His presence. When I worked at a summer camp I would always go to a certain coffee shop to honor my Sabbath and had amazing devotional time spent with God there.
Do you have any places where you seem to hear from God more often? Any place of spiritual significance that you like to revisit? Maybe you wouldn’t use the phrase “hearing from God.” Maybe you simply find peace in certain places you go.
If the idea of hearing from God is new to you, I encourage you to simply find a quiet place to read your Bible and/or pray.
John 10:4 NIV states, “When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them and his sheep follow him because they know his voice.”
Notice: this is Jesus speaking and He is making a metaphor between sheep and His Church. Jesus doesn’t simply ask us to know His voice in this metaphor, knowing His voice is implied and expected in terms of the sheep following their Shepherd.
Here are three ways to discern Jesus’ voice.
Scripture: the more we learn God’s Word the more we understand His character. Jesus will never tell you to do something contrary to Scripture.
Sacred Community: we can learn what God is trying to say simply by being around friends and mentors who reflect well the character of God. Patient, kind, faithful, and loving people often say the most encouraging things.
Proverbs 25:11 NASB says, “Like apples of gold in settings of silver is a word spoken in right circumstances.”
God’s Spirit: I’m not promising God is going to part the seas and spell out His will for your life in the sand, but God does desire to speak to you. Spend some time alone, intentionally seeking Him and you will be surprised at what comes to mind. A lot of times prayer life can turn into a grocery list of needs for God. Allow God to give you an answer to your requests as you set aside time to both pray and listen.
I pray that over time you will learn to discern what Jesus is speaking to you and/or prompting you to do. Who knows, maybe you are the “sacred community” someone is looking for in their life. Encouraging words can mean the world to the right person at the right time, especially when those words are from God.
“Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.” -Proverbs 18:21 NASB
