Last year, I attended an annual women’s ministry event called, A Women’s Day Apart and a guest speaker Anne Fleetwood happened to speak about this. I thought it is worth sharing with you. She advised to ask yourself the following questions:

• Is the message a direct verse from the Bible?
• Does the message match God’s character—loving, forgiving, compassionate, kind?
• What do Jesus’ followers say about it? For example, your pastor, spiritual director, mentors etc.

Since last year, I have taken Anne’s advice and continued to work on ways to be still and listen out for God’s voice.  Often, I have to remind myself to remove myself from worldly distractions, such as purposefully setting time aside to be still, even if it’s for five minutes, to just BE in His presence. It’s a time where I am not asking for anything or praying about anything but a time when I can acknowledge God for who He is: amazing, kind, compassionate, loving, forgiving, all knowing. I must admit, I don’t do this often enough but am working on it and praying that the Holy Spirit will continue to transform my heart.

I have started to incorporate daily bible reading into my life and journaling about it.  It’s in those moments, when I least expect it, He teaches me things in such soft whispers but moves my spirit in such profound ways.  This made me think of Elijah:

“Go out and stand before me on the mountain,” the Lord told him. And as Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. (1 Kings 19: 11-13)

In the past, I was looking for signs, big signs, but I have come to learn and know that God can speak to me in whispers if I can only just be still and listen. Signs can be misleading. All I need to do is believe and put my trust in God. Sometimes I ask myself, am I really listening out for God or am I listening to my own wants, needs and ego.

In those quiet moments, God whispered to me and made me realize that He has never left me and that He truly loves me.

In my conversation with my friend, I also felt it was worth sharing that I still need to be able to take action and not just simply sit back and “hope for the best”.  I am still going to try but my ability to try only goes so far.  I leave the rest up to Him with what I am praying and listening out for.

In my decision making, I can still make mistakes even after I have prayed about it.  Perhaps it was God trying to have me learn from His lesson. In those moments, it’s important for me to acknowledge that I have made a mistake, that I was at fault and that I need to ask for forgiveness from anyone I have wronged and most importantly from God. How can I humble myself more? How can I recognize and appreciate the season God has provided for me?

For everything there is a season,
    a time for every activity under heaven.
 A time to be born and a time to die.
    A time to plant and a time to harvest.
 A time to kill and a time to heal.
    A time to tear down and a time to build up.
 A time to cry and a time to laugh.
    A time to grieve and a time to dance.
 A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones.
    A time to embrace and a time to turn away.
 A time to search and a time to quit searching.
    A time to keep and a time to throw away.
 A time to tear and a time to mend.
    A time to be quiet and a time to speak.
 A time to love and a time to hate.
    A time for war and a time for peace

Ecclesiastes 3: 1-8

Lastly, I have come to realize that it’s ok to ask for help by asking others to pray for me.

At the end of the day, we are still human but through our acceptance of Jesus dying on the cross for our sins, we are saved. In the end, no matter what it is that we are going through, we will be ok because Jesus loves us that much.

~Justine, writer from The Scarlet Rope