ODJ: Our Father’s voice

ODJ_290810

August 29, 2010

Your own ears will hear Him. Right behind you a voice will say, “This is the way you should go,” whether to the right or to the left (v.21).

READ: Isaiah 30:18-22

I host a live, call-in radio program. Recently we explored the tricky topic of hearing God’s voice. “Does God speak personally to people?” I asked listeners. “If so, how? And how can we be sure it’s His voice we’re hearing and not our own thoughts?” Maryanne was my first caller.  

“Fifteen years ago I heard God speak to me—audibly,” she said. “I was in the New Age movement, was desperately lonely, and one day called out to God for help.” 

“What words did you hear this voice say?” I asked. “He told me to visit a particular church,” she replied; “the last church I’d have thought of visiting.” Maryanne described how she obeyed that voice, visited the church, was introduced to the Bible, and became a Christian.  

We can be skeptical of such stories, but doesn’t Maryanne’s experience ring true to God’s character? 

Isaiah addressed the Israelites during a time of calamity. They had abandoned God and were now reaping the consequences. Yet God still longed to love them (Isaiah 30:18). “He will be gracious if you ask for help,” Isaiah said (v.19). At their earnest cry, the responsive God would speak, His voice guiding them to His side (v.21). As a result, they would reject the idols and spiritualities that had led them astray (v.22). Isn’t this Maryanne’s story?  

God’s voice may be heard as thunder (John 12:29), as a thought (Acts 20:22), and even as a human voice (1 Kings 19:12; 1 Samuel 3:4). “I think God primarily speaks to us through the Bible,” Maryanne went on to say. “But I will never forget that experience.”  

As we study the Bible and listen to God (Hebrews 1:2; 2 Timothy 3:16), let’s be ready for His voice today—that strong, authoritative, fatherly voice.  

—Sheridan Voysey

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When was the last time you “heard” the voice of God? How do you think we can discern between His voice and our own thoughts and desires?

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Filed under Devotional, Our Daily Journey.