Can You Hear Me Now?

“Be still, and know that I am God...” —Psalms 46:10 (a)

What did you say?

Have you ever thought to yourself that you really don’t know what God wants you to do about this or that concern? Or perhaps you have spoken to a friend that says, “If I just knew what God wanted me to do I would do it”? In each of these incidents it is concluded that you just can’t “hear” God and what He is trying to say. That it is so difficult to get connected and know what God wants you to do.

Some even goes as far as to say that you can’t “hear” God anyway (or Cessationalists say that He doesn’t talk to us anymore) and that you can only follow what is in the Bible, as it is the only voice God has given us to listen too. This is far from the truth. What keeps us from hearing God, besides unbelief, is that we are too busy with life to stop and “know” Him. A good starting point here is to know what “know” means. It is very interesting:

• verb: be familiar or acquainted with a person or an object
• verb: be aware of the truth of something; have a belief or faith in something; regard as true beyond any doubt
• verb: have fixed in the mind
• verb: perceive as familiar
• verb: be able to distinguish, recognize as being different
• verb: know the nature or character of
• verb: accept (someone) to be what is claimed or accept his power and authority

Let’s take a look at each aspect of what it means to know something. In this case, it is to understand do we really know God, and if not, then what we should do so that we can know Him. In doing this we will begin to get an understanding of how to hear God and to be guided by Him in our lives. In other words, building a dynamic relationship with God.

Let’s get acquainted
(Be familiar or acquainted with a person or object)

First we must know that God exists and that He can, and does, function in our lives. In other words, we must first be followers of God and the Lord Jesus Christ in order for us to have a relationship with the same. How can we have a dynamic communication with someone that we don’t even believe exists or are familiar with in the first place? So we must then know that God is there and be acquainted with who and what He is. This is the first step.

I believe you
(Be aware of the truth of something; have a belief or faith in something; regard as true beyond any doubt)

The second step is that we must have faith in God. In order to have faith in God we must first believe in what God is all about. This of course leads us directly to Christ in whom we must place our trust in. Trusting Christ is an act of belief and faith. First that we believe in what He teaches and then have faith that what is taught is the truth, that it has the power to effect change in our lives for the better. That the heavenly goal is real and tangible—without doubting.

So now we know that God is real. We believe in Him, the truths He teaches and have faith in Christ Jesus and trust that in doing so will place the power of God in our lives to effect dynamic change. So far so good, now for the next step.

Heaven on my mind
(Have fixed in the mind)

Here we understand that we must constantly be aware of our relationship that we are building with God. This is accomplished by setting our minds on godly or heavenly things. Too often we are consumed with our own lives. Work, family, and other concerns fill our lives so fully that we lose sight of our connection with God. It is important to note that the very quality of those concerns is founded on our connection with God.

So it is important to be mindful of not only our connection with God, but how it impacts and interacts in our daily lives. To apply our relationship with Him to our other relationships that we have in life. We don’t have life and then add God, we have God which adds quality to our lives. So now we know God is real. We believe and have faith in Him. And now we keep our focus on Him to effect change in our lives. Let us continue.

Just you and me Lord
(Perceive as familiar)

Now this may seem like we have already covered this area, but in fact this is something new. This “perceive as familiar” is all about the relationship that we are building with God. It is the familiarity that comes with routine, discipline, consistency and oneness in spirit. Oneness in spirit you say? Why yes, it is crucial to our relationship with God. Let me explain.

When you are one with God, the connection is as real as the fingers on your hand, the breathing of your lungs. He effectively becomes part of you, and just as familiar as the above. You don’t think of your fingers as separate from your body do you? Neither will you think of God as separate from your life when you reach this point. It is in the routine of applying the aforementioned steps that you build this oneness with God—and consistently disciplining yourself to them.

So now we know God is real, have faith and belief in Him and His truths, and are keeping our focus on Him. In this we have added consistency and discipline that will gives us a very sense of familiarity with the spirit of God in our lives. Yet there is more.

Getting to know you
(Be able to distinguish, recognize as being different)

We must come to an understanding of those things that are of God and those things which are of the world. The two are mutually exclusive. The things of God are never the things of the world and vice versa. Why? Well in Romans 8:7&8 it states, “Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God”

This is important because when we are walking in the world (of the carnal mind) we are unable to “please” God. In other words we are not abiding in His grace and His laws. This removes us from having a relationship with Him because there is separation between Him and ourselves. We have isolated ourselves from His presence and His influence in our lives. So we must develop the knowledge of the things of God so we can recognize when we are operating outside of them.

This is much like knowing the difference between being inside your house and being outdoors. The scenery is different. Your interaction with your surroundings is different. Everything is different because they are two different places. We can not be inside AND outside at the same time. Neither can we be of God and the world at the same time.

So now we know that God is real, have a trusting faith and belief in Him and His truths. We are keeping our focus on Him by being consistent in our efforts, which builds our discipline in our walk with Him. This makes His presence in our lives real and familiar and that leads to understanding when we are with Him and when we are not.

Now I understand
(Know the nature or character of)

In doing all these previous steps we come to realize that we can distinguish the very nature and character of God. It takes us beyond just reading or hearing about the goodness of God, to having a living example of it in our lives. We are now living a real and dynamic relationship with God that allows us to get to “know” Him and not just know about Him. We are closing in on our goal of being able to hear God and obeying.

You can not help but to get to know God if you are following these steps because you are relating to Him on a constant and consistent basis. Like a friend of many years, you get to know their moods, their likes and dislikes, what they believe and ultimately how they are going to respond in any given situation. You get a measure of who and what they are.

We will never really know all of who and what God is while sojourning here in the flesh. But one day we will see His son face-to-face and be just like Him. We will one day encompass all the good of God in our lives and sin will no longer hold sway. In this we will have a living example of the nature of God, because it will be our nature. And that is our ultimate goal in our relationship with God, to be like Him.

So now not only is God real to us, and we believe and have faith in Him. But as we have traveled this road we have come be focused on Him, with discipline and consistency which has made His presence real and dynamic in our lives. We know when we are walking uprightly and when we are not. In this we have built a relationship with our God that is both rewarding and very real. We have a more sure understanding of how God operates and what pleases and displeases Him. We begin to understand the character and nature of our God.

So what does this all mean? Let’s take a look.

Thy will be done
(Accept (someone) to be what is claimed or accept his power and authority)

In understanding the character and nature of God better, we now know that God only intends the best for us. We understand that only He can see the road ahead and provide all that we need to negotiate it successfully. We now know that it is only in following the path that Christ mapped out that we can avoid the pitfalls of sin—and it’s reward, eternal death. It is in allowing Him to lead the way, and us following, that we can reach our heavenly goal, eternal life.

We know that in accepting his power and authority in our lives that we are not relinquishing control, we are plugging into the power of the universe to effect change in our lives. We are not losing our will but gaining God’s will. We are stepping up from the mortal quagmire of sin into the clean, pristine hallways of God’s heavenly kingdom itself. We gain everything. The only thing we lose is the power of sin over our lives. This is something we should all readily desire to discard and walk away from eternally, and our relationship with God gives us the power to do so. The light is always greater than the darkness.

So what have we attained on this journey to “know” God? Many things of great importance actually. But the greatest of these is the very real and dynamic relationship that has been established between ourselves and God, and all the rewards that come with that. There is only one last thing to understand.

In the stillness

As we have gone through all of this we have found that God is a very active and willing partner. That He meets us halfway (actually a lot more than half) and helps us along the way. But in order to build this relationship with God we must first focus on God. We must place our efforts squarely on building this relationship. In that we learn we must “quiet” all outside influences that are not directly of God. No, I don’t mean finding a mountain top and camping out like a hermit. But rather slow down in life, refocus our efforts and our desires. The only thing that ever separates us from God, and hence the power of His presence in our lives, is us. We are ones who decide to build the relationship, putting time and effort into it. As the saying goes, “the rewards are only in proportion to the efforts to achieve them”.

So we must still ourselves from the hectic clamoring of the outside world as it battles to exclusively hold our attention away from God. We must still our minds from the constant focusing on achieving worldly goals. We must still our spirits from those worldly desires of the flesh. We must still our spirits from the need to quench them from the waters of the empty wells of an ungodly life. We must still ourselves—and know He is God. Then when all is quiet and He asks, “can you hear me now?” We can answer, “yes!”

And that is indeed—good!

Be blessed, be loved and be at peace. May the light of God's presence and glory fire the brilliance of your souls. You are greatly loved.