In the Scriptures, God gives us over 6000 Promises of what we can expect from Him. We also are given distinct short “messages” that we must obey if we want the Peace that is beyond understanding.
He gives us directives like, “Do not fear, do not be anxious for anything, or worry about tomorrow." and "Do not be afraid."
The biggest reason I seek God's Words or Voice (One and the same) is to find Peace, Hope, Encouragement, Renewed faith, and strength to walk His Walk. There is never an end to the list of reasons why we need to know God’s Word or hear His Voice in our lives. His Words are Life in Themselves.
Did you know that in addition to the Ten Commandments, over 600 commands were given to the Israelites as they went forward to the Promise Land? They can be found in Leviticus, Deuteronomy, and Numbers. They were given so that His people would survive and prosper.
What to do, pay attention. Over and over again, these words were spoken to them in the books of Deuteronomy. Do Not Forget was pressed down upon them by Moses repeatedly.
Not only were the Israelites not to forget the commands given to them, but they were also called to remember what God had already done for them and how they would be punished when they disobeyed and went back to old habits.
May this be the lesson that we never forget as we learn from their journey to new life:
Be careful to observe this whole commandment that I enjoin on you today, that you may live and increase, and may enter in and possess the land which the LORD promised on oath to your ancestors. 2 Remember how for these forty years the LORD, your God, has directed all your journeying in the wilderness, so as to test you by affliction, to know what was in your heart: to keep his commandments, or not. 3 He therefore let you be afflicted with hunger, and then fed you with manna, a food unknown to you and your ancestors, so you might know that it is not by bread alone* that people live, but by all that comes forth from the mouth of the LORD. - Deuteronomy 8:1
Dearest Beloved of God, daily you can enter into the land of God’s Promises if you hear His Words and live His Words. Thankfully, those 600 rules meant to bring the Israelites health and a good life was really boiled down into these three for us today:
“Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?”
He said to him, “You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment.
The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.” Mathew 22
Then later Jesus gives us His last command: Love Others as I Have Loved You. (See 1 Corinthians 13 if you need to find the definition of ‘as I have loved you.”)
The Bible is referred to as the Living Word—for the messages will never be void/dead and will continue to do the work they are meant to do. So for the life you long for, the happiness and peace you desire - go daily to feed on the Word of God!
This quote allows us to see how with "understanding” we can see how what the Lord said applies to us today:
The LORD said to Moses: 2 Speak to the Israelites and tell them: I, the LORD, Am your God.* 3 You shall not do as they do in the land of Egypt, where you once lived, nor shall you do as they do in the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you; do not conform to their customs. 4 My decrees you shall carry out, and My statutes you shall take care to follow. I, the LORD, am your God. 5 Keep, then, My statutes the and decrees, for the person who carries them out will find life* through them. I am the Lord!”
Egypt was the land where they were in bondage and slavery. What are you doing now that has you held in a state of slavery or addiction?
The land of Canaan is our world today, and similar to the lifestyle the world says you should adopt and live by. In the New Testament to we are told not to conform to the ways of the world. So, beloved before you desire to learn of any other ways in which God speaks to us, now is the time to examine your life and decide this day which gods you choose to serve!
Thus Will I Test Them
You may not want to read this post if your closet is so crammed you cannot find anything to wear, or if your garage is so packed the car does not fit in. Or if your makeup drawer has makeup that's 10 years old, or if you need signs directing you to the rooms of your house—in your house.
Oh you're still reading, good! For God has a really important Word for you:
From Sunday’s reading in Exodus 16:
Each day the people are to go out and gather their daily portion; thus will I test them, to see whether they follow my instructions or not.
How many of us heard in that reading, ‘gather their daily portion' - or only what they need? How many of us thought of all the ways we store up, the ways we live in fear of not having enough, or of tomorrow’s needs? How many of us check our bank accounts daily, making sure our IRA’s are saving enough, and ensuring our retirement is well planned?
Now, that is not bad—really, for we need to be good stewards—but do we really trust and believe that our God will provide for our daily needs? Or do we think, like many, “God helps those who help themselves”? (Not found in the Scripture, by the way).
Consider this scripture however - Math 6:19-34. It starts with, “Do not store up treasures” and ends with “Do not worry about tomorrow.”
He sent the Apostles out with shoes they wore, the clothing they wore. You may say, hey - that is a different vocation/calling entirely. I agree, so just what part of these Words of God are we to apply to our life—His calling to ‘come follow Me?’
In Math 10:38-39, we read, "Anyone who does not take his cross and follow in my footsteps is not worthy of me. Anyone who finds his life will lose it, anyone who loses his life for my sake will find it.”
Considering how many times a day I forget what I am after as I go from room to room, I knew that God was really speaking to my heart here. Again, He is asking me to trust more and more in Him, and believe that when I seek, ask, and come knocking—He will do as He has promised.
Whatever is needed for my daily portion of grace, gifts, strength, love, He will provide! Why is this so hard for us to truly believe this Promise of God’s? He gives what is really needed in our lives--and if we are wise, we will recognize what is unnecessary and even a hindrance in our spiritual walk with Him.
It is time to look at what clutter, contaminants, blockage, false gods, treasures are stealing your joy; agendas that keep you stressed and frustrated. What is in your life is causing you to be like the Israelites in the desert? Are we, like them, whining, fussing, grumbling, griping, seeking other gods, complaining and, yes, even being angry with God? Admit it, you have gotten angry for the way your life is going sometimes, haven’t you? I know I have. It is time to remember once more His spoken Words to Moses—it is time to repent and to obey, trust in His love and grow in our faith.
Then the LORD said to Moses, “I will now rain down bread from heaven for you. Each day the people are to go out and gather their daily portion; thus will I test them, to see whether they follow my instructions or not.
Let us do some deep thinking on this Scripture today and seek God’s wisdom, asking, “You talking to me God?” As for myself, I have some rooms, closets, and the back porch to clean out. I may need to rent a trailer to haul bags off to the thrift store...
Know this to be true: a life or lifestyle that is cluttered and disorganized will make it difficult for you to hear God speak to you within your heart.
He said, “My sheep know my voice.” When you think of a lamb, or a ‘sheep’ what is the image you see? It is a trusting, quiet, and calm animal that stays in sight of the Shepherd. They are content and have no fear. Reflect on your life - where in your life’s picture will you find the Shepherd? Does your home seem peaceful and serene as it should be in His control with green pasture and still waters? These are answers you must seek in your own heart and ask for God’s grace to be more ‘sheepish’ perhaps.
Here is another Scripture that had me asking questions:
It was the Bible reading where the general wanted Jesus to heal his servant and told Him all He had to do was say the word—and the servant would be healed. What questions did it raise in your mind? Remember the line that line we still say at Mass daily? “Just say the Word and my soul will be healed.”
Many were the times when I silently cried out, “What is the word, God?" Some secret code—some special Word that heals all? Could it be that the Word is Forgive?
This reflection on healing also ties in to the reading from John Chapter 5 and calls to mind the ‘question’ Jesus asked the man at the Pool of Bethesda: “Do you want to be well?” Jesus asks a man crippled for 38 years. “Do you want to be well?”
Um, hello - he's been crippled for 38 years and Jesus asks this man, ‘do you want to be well?’ But that is us, isn’t it? Do we want to be well?
Again, if we want to walk and talk with God these questions must be addressed.
We are crippled in many ways and stay in that state of life, even though we claim we want to be well. And the man speaks what we all do sometimes; he rationalized and gave the excuse “nobody will help me!”
We may think that we are where we are, in the state we are in—because somebody else is at fault. Come on, admit it. Somewhere inside, as inner healing comes in, more and more, we remember who said what, who did what and when they did it, how hurtful it was to us. All of these buried feelings have left us crippled emotionally, and yes even physically. Not only do we blame others, we also hold on to resentment and pain. When we have not forgiven, and have buried anger, bitterness and resentment within, it makes us physically sick and emotionally a mess. To begin ‘inner healing,’ you must give God permission to open up the memory door and take you to the root of some behavior problem you have. For me, God took me to the root of eating behavior and worse yet—flying off the handle and getting angry over ‘stuff.’
Once God let me experience just how badly I could act. I had a really big eruption of anger over milk being left out all night by my grandson who was staying with us. I got so mad it hurt inside my gut. As soon as that happened, I knew what God doing. I had just gone to confession about a flare up yesterday that was angrier than usual. I knew that God really wanted me to experience and know what anger does to my spirit. For, until we admit the truth, we stay in denial and crippled.
Then last night, He gave me more wisdom via a dream about someone dying, where the family was immediately sorting and getting rid of stuff with some hidden banker selling it off for them. Upon waking, I wondered who what this was all about? For the details and length left the dream embedded on my mind.
Then after I blew up about the milk, this dream’s interpretation and meaning was loud and clear. You are killing yourself over material and emotional stuff. You are spiritually dead because of how important your stuff is. Your home and posessions, and most importantly, how you are treated and recognized as being a person of worth, accepted and praised. This recognition is so important to us we let these fears of not being accepted---control us.
Are you seeing the connection? We get hurt, angry, and bitter when we are mistreated, unappreciated, under-recognized and unjustly misunderstood. Then we hold on to this, stew on it, chew on it and store it for more ammunition when needed for a good fight in the future. “Just you wait Henry Higgins!!!!”
Well folks: Do you want to be well? Rise, take up your mat/life, and walk into wellness, by letting go of what you feel is so important that you will get angry if it is touched or moved.
Remember the scripture that confused us all—if a man sins because of his arm, leg, eye etc then cut it off? Well this is what that scripture was all about. If we sin because of something we possess, or emotional knowledge/baggage we are holding onto—let go of it, get connected spiritually with God’s grace and peace.
Seek ye first, seek ye wisdom, seek ye the Lord—now is the time of your salvation! Serve ye the Lord, or be spiritually dead, because of that self-centered, controlling life. Let the fireworks begin, give God permission to reveal the truth within, and ask for the grace to admit to this truth so He can set you free!
Are you starting to understand how God speaks to you?
