God's voice, or your imagination?

My daughter asked me how she could tell the difference between God speaking to her and her own thoughts.  This is what I told her.

It is written, "God's ways are not your ways, and God's thoughts are not your thoughts; as high as the heavens are above the earth, so are God's ways above your ways, and God's thoughts above your thoughts."  So focus on three things:

1. You are not God.
I told my daughter this:  the question, "How can I tell if God is speaking to me or if it's my own mind," assumes that you can think something so...profound(?), or whatever, that you couldn't tell the difference between your thoughts and God's, as if there may not be a difference.  But there is a difference!  You are not God, and God is not you.  Not only that, but something else.

2. You are mind isn't God's mind.
I told my daughter this:  Not only are you clearly "not God," but your mind is infinitely inferior to His.  God's mind, intelligence, creativity, and reasonability are infinitely above yours.  Which means this:  all you have to do is think, and you can know that whatever you thought, God didn't, by definition, for this reason:

3.  You can't know God's thoughts unless he reveals them.
It is also written, "No one knows a person's thoughts except the spirit of the person in them, and no one knows God's thoughts expect the Spirit of God."  In the same way that people can't read each others' minds, no one can read God's mind, or know His thoughts, unless He reveals them.  So again, if you are thinking about something, it's clearly you thinking about it.  If you can come up with it, it's not God.  And if you have any doubt as to whether a thought came from you or God, it didn't come from God.  Because God's thoughts are infinitely above yours, you can be certain that if He reveals His thoughts to you, it would be undeniably irresistibly clear.

I told my daughter, "If you don't know if it's God speaking to you, then it's not."

Your Power

"The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit."  Proverbs 18:21

Think of something someone said that hurts you, even now...if it's not too painful. 

Now think of something someone said that changed your life. 
Or something someone said still affecting your life. 

If it helps, I'll go first.

I'll actually start with something someone didn't say.  In one of the hardest times of my life, I called my dad, hoping to see him.  It was a horrible conversation.  But I at least wanted it to end well.  So I said, "Dad, I'm sorry if this conversation is bothersome to you.  I'm going to have to go now, and I want you to know that I love you."

My dad didn't respond.

"Dad, I love you."

"I hear you son."

Then more silence. 

Then I hung up.

My dad never said, "I love you too, son."  Now, of course, he didn't say, "I DON'T love you, son."  But he might as well.  His silence, his simply "hearing" me, could've killed me.  This is because "the tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit."  My dad spoke death.  Years earlier my mom spoke life.

I was in college, or about to go to college.  I was still living with my mom at the time, and we were in her room together.  She was grading papers, and I can't remember what I was doing.  Then, for no apparent reason, she said, "Son, I want you to know that nothing is wrong with you.  I know you've been trying to find someone to love and you haven't yet.  But I want you to know that nothing is wrong with you."  She spoke life to me by the power of her tongue.  Maybe even resurrection.  I didn't know I was dead.  I'd never said or thought to myself, "Something is wrong with me."  But I realized that I must have been assuming it, in despair, in a quiet depression.  Until my mother told me nothing was wrong with me.  I still enjoy the fruit of the power of her words.  What about you?

Now that I've told you the words in my life that killed me and brought me back to life, what words do you remember?  What words of death and resurrection?  Even more importantly, or maybe more importantly, what words have you spoken that killed or resurrected someone? 

If you've killed someone with your words, there's still hope.  Your words not only have the power to kill, but also to give life.  Your apology may raise someone from the dead. 

Now think of someone one you love.  What can you say to give them life, or bring them back to life?  If you thought of words that gave you life, think of why those words impacted you.  How you can you do the same for someone else?  

Take note of the answer; it is your power.

The Spirit in Their House

May I ask you something?
What do you want to know?
I notice you don't seem stressed out when things are crazy around here at work.  Why is that?
When things are stressful, I pray.
To who?
Jesus.
And He answers you?
Yes, He does Marvin.
How do you know?
The peace you see when things are crazy.
I want that.  How do you get it?
If you want to come over to my house tonight, we can have more time to talk.
Can I bring my wife and kids?
I'd love that...let me call my wife first to make sure we're ready.
I understand.

***

Come in Marvin.
Brandon, this is my wife Katrina.  Katrina, Brandon.
Thank you for inviting us.  Marvin speaks highly of you.
You're welcome.  I appreciate Marvin's respect.
This is Fallon, our youngest; she's 10, and Garrison, our oldest, 13.
Nice to meet you both.
Nice to meet you too.
Come on in.  You can all sit where you want.  I'll call our kids down.

Lindsey is our oldest, she's 15.  Next is Nicole, 13, and Paul, 9.  Kids, say hi to Brandon, Katrina, Fallon, and Garrison.

Hey.
Hello.
Hi.
Nice to meet you.
You too.


Everyone, Marvin wanted to know why I have peace when things are crazy at work.  I told him it's because of Jesus.  We're here for Marvin's family to meet the Lord.  He can best explain the peace He gives.

How are we going to meet Him?
His Spirit, Katrina.  His Spirit is in me and my family, and He's in this house.  You felt Him when you came in.

How did you know we felt Him?
Did you?
Well, we actually did, but we couldn't put into words what we felt.
Describe it, as best as you can.
....well, it actually does feel like an invisible person is in your house, kind of everywhere in the house, but in no specific place.

I know what Katrina means.  I actually feel the same way when I'm around you at work Brandon.  I never thought about it fully until Katrina described how your house feels. 

That's the Lord.  It's His Spirit.
We want Him in us, in our house, and in our lives.  How can that happen?
Ask Him.  Invite Him.  And He'll come.
That's all?
That's it...well, with this understanding.  He's God.  Not just any guest.  He actually owns you and your house and family already.  When you're welcoming Him, you're accepting the truth of who He is.  Are you willing to do that?

Yes, we are.
You can do it now.