Praise be that God knows we have doubts from time to time, so He sent the Holy Spirit testify to our spirits that we are indeed children of God (Romans 8:16-17)! God speaks to us indirectly through creation, His word and directly through prayer. It is at least the beginning of prayer. God is with Jacob; God is with US. First we listen, and God speaks. While the average work week has dropped from about 70 hours a week in the late 1800s2 to about 40 today, considering about 2/3rds of households have two people working,3 not much has changed in relation to the insane number of hours we have to work. God does not have to use external words and signs to attract our attention and convey ideas to us. I am mentoring a young man, but I also have a mentor, a retired senior pastor, who tells me the truth. He speaks at all times, especially in prayer. It is He who stirs up within us the desire to persevere against all adversaries. There are times when in my dullness of hearing or understanding, someone will come up to me and say something that I hadn’t even considered. Pope Benedict XVI appointed Ralph as a consultor to the Pontifical Council for the New Evangelization, and he continues to serve in this capacity. These are specific promises that God gives to Jacob. Furthermore, when we do not know what to pray for the Spirit groans in wordless groans and make petitions on our behalf that are in accordance with the will of God (Romans 8:26-30). Through Nature and God’s Creation. How can we ever doubt it? How foolish it is to read all types of books and neglect the word of God! But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”. And we should remain very cautious about declaring with absolute certainty that God has put something on our hearts unless it has a chapter and verse attached to it. Psalms 46:10 Ralph is also the director of Graduate Theology Programs in Evangelization and a professor of theology at Sacred Heart Major Seminary in the Archdiocese of Detroit (www.shms.edu). He enters our mind when the passing things of time excite our thoughts. And we read in the life of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque that, while she was engaged in prayer, Jesus often spoke to her of the devotion to His Sacred Heart. |, faithful are the wounds of a friend; profuse are the kisses of an enemy, 5 Signs God isTrying to Get Your Attention, 7 Signs God Is Pushing You Into Something Awesome, 8 Things The Bible Says Will Happen Before Jesus Returns Again, 6 Things You Should Never Say To Your Spouse, 5 Bad Mistakes Some Christians Make While Dating. Conclusion God Speaks to Us Through Our Prayers. When we’re children, we get excited during Christmas or birthdays because we can receive gifts. It is only by faith that we know He is working in us. For those who have the Spirit living inside of them the commands of God are not a burden for those who are born of God have already overcome the ways of this world (1 John 5:3-5). The Teacher of teachers instructs without sound of words, and though I have never heard Him speak, yet I know He is within me, always guiding and inspiring me; and just when I need them, lights, hitherto unseen, break in upon me. The fruit of faith is love. What Vatican II Actually Teaches and Its Implications for the New Evangelization, and The Urgency of the New Evangelization, as well as many articles in scholarly and popular publications. God Speaks To Our Hearts When one becomes too busy to read the Bible, meditate and pray; business becomes the unrivaled archenemy of spiritual authenticity and a god to that person! God intends for us to be WITH Him, not…, To Restore The Nation, The Lord Has To Do: Restoration: Repair and Restore (Amos 9:13-15), To Restore The Nation, The Lord Has To Do: Renovation: the Kingdom Connection (Amos 9:11-12), To Restore The Nation, The Lord Has To Do: Demolition: Sinful Structures Shatter (Amos 9:8-10). The Church encourages us to read it, because she knows that the word of God can enter into our minds and that God, in His own mysterious way, can teach the true way of life, the way of love and intimate union with Him. That’s your part—to seek Him. We should not expect it. Chocked with life’s worries while chasing riches and pleasures (Luke 8:14);4 we rev our business engines to peak capacity and as a result can almost see the living waters of God’s presence give way to our fiery passions of ever increasing performance. When we pray, then, we should also listen, because a good conversationalist is also a good listener. Killian J. Healy, O. Carm (1912-2003) was a Carmelite priest who served as the Prior General of the Order from 1959-1971. to speak to us. God is eternal; His words are eternal. These actual graces are, especially, the holy thoughts and desires that God creates in us. Holiness, Purpose Of Lack Of Meaning Legalism Lips Pretence. We may fall deeply in love with Him and practice faithfully the presence of God, yet never receive any extraordinary manifestations from Him. Catholic Exchange is a project of Sophia Institute Press. Another method of slowing down those business revs is through fasting. And the fruit of service is peace. RSS Entries and RSS Comments, Gems from Genesis: God Speaks to Our Hearts, Gems from Genesis: God Speaks to Our Hearts Sermon Audio Here, Congregationalism – Life and ministry from a Congregational perspective, 10/14 reminder: this is a specific story FOR JACOB; we’re not him. He also He speaks to us in our hearts. The fruit of prayer is deepening of faith. All rights reserved. We do not pray well when we recite ready-made formulas quickly and distractedly. God’s not going to run you down. How do you think our crew chief in life, God feels when we refuse to seek and obey His instructions on how to run the race He has constructed (Colossians 1:16) and set before us? Does God help us in a special way to think good thoughts and to desire holy things? prayer, I believe it is clear that God does move and speak in our spirits, but we must hold our certainty about his leadership with a little tenuousness, open to godly counsel, always subject to Scripture. It’s like someone showing up at your door and giving you a message from someone you already know. Twenty years or so ago NASCAR race drivers did not have any built-in communication between them and their crew chief. Why would God use a third party to reach me? And that connection is prayer, is oneness with God. We often read of visions, apparitions, and revelations in which God spoke to the saints. And the last part of this sermon is going to explain how to listen as God speaks directly to a person through the direct promptings of His Spirit. The world tells us adults that success is measured by the number of events on our calendars! Thus, the miraculous aspect of a physical voice coming from nowhere allows us to believe in situations that are beyond us. Perhaps we have never realized that God is illuminating our intellect and inspiring our will. He calls us His own, and we get to be a part of God’s family. Even though it seems obvious, we can’t overlook the fact that the Word of God is the very breath of God and Him speaking to us. Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; For God has put it in their hearts to execute His purpose by having a common purpose, and by giving their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God will be fulfilled. God can discern every thought, intent, and motive of our hearts, and nothing is hidden from Him (Hebrews 4:13). When NASCAR legalized the use of in-helmet head-sets do you think any of the drivers refused communication with their crew chief who had a better vantage point and could keep better track of these details than they could?19 NO, but if the driver refused to talk to the chief or when he did talk he merely babbled about how hot it was, how his date was, how the football game went without letting the chief speak; would not the chief think that driver was insane? Yet, O Lord of hosts, You who test the righteous,Who see the mind and the heart;Let me see Your vengeance on them;For to You I have set forth my cause. But as we grow older, we learn that sometimes it’s more fun to GIVE a gift than to receive one. It is He who stirs up within us the desire to persevere against all adversaries. And when we see God, naturally we begin to love one another. Many people never listen to God because they are not aware that He speaks to them. Although He speaks to all men, He speaks to us personally. He is the author of the widely read The Fulfillment of All Desire: A Guidebook for the Journey to God Based on the Wisdom of the Saints, and many books on spirituality and evangelization, such as Will Many Be Saved? Examined, confronted and repented sin is forgiven (1 John 1:9) and forgotten (Isaiah 43:25); while cherished sin means that God won’t listen to our prayers (Psalms 66:18). Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. But how does God speak to us? so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love. He comes right into our mind. God Speaks to our Hearts And I will kill her children with pestilence, and all the churches will know that I am He who searches the minds and hearts; and I will give to each one of you according to your deeds. I have concerns when people say, “God spoke to me and told me you’re supposed to do this or that.” My question is why would God not choose to speak to me first and instead use someone else to do it for me? God is a pure spirit. When God whispers something to me, deep within the recesses of my heart, and I am convicted by it, I am often moved to act. Most of the time, He does it without them even knowing! No, the Church alone is the divinely appointed authority to guide us in the correct interpretation of the Bible. Prayer is more about listening than speaking. “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities–his … The fruit of love is service. Here are four ways God can speak to His people. Sophia Excerpts. We should not even desire that God speak to us in this extraordinary manner. Going 10,000 RPMs to outperform all others has left many Christians with no time to spend with God. The fruit of love is service. May the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and into the steadfastness of Christ. By journaling one can soften the heart to that one might better distinguish and confess sin that so easily entangles and keeps us from being close to a holy God. For, if we continually recite vocal prayers without pausing now and then to think, we will stifle the thoughts and desires that God wishes to excite in us. “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.