One of the most important truths we learn from Abram is when God makes a promise don’t take matters into your own hands. God promised Abram He would give him a son, but Abram and Sarai decided God was taking too long, so they took matters in their own hands. Sarai gave Abram her maidservant, Hagar, so Abram “they” would be able to have a son. In truth, Hagar’s son would be Abram’s son, but that son would not be the child God promised him. We will see as we read in the days ahead that Hagar’s son, Ishmael, became a challenge and a problem, for Abram and Sarai. That could have been avoided had they only waited for God’s timing instead of insisting on moving in their own.
How many times have you been impatient with God’s timing in your life? I know it’s been far too often for me. I have never had such a specific promise from God as Abram and Sarai, but I remember when Nancy and I were praying for God to give us a child, a period that lasted for nearly a decade, so many times I thought God had forgotten us. In much smaller matters, I push my will thinking it is God who is challenging me to step forward in faith. The question becomes, “How do we know when God is speaking to us, and when it’s our own desire?” Henry Blackaby offers a great response to that question in his book Experiencing God. Blackaby tells us God speaks to us in four primary ways: 1) through His written word–the Bible; 2) through prayer; 3) through circumstances; and 4) through other believers.
Let’s look a little closer at each way. When we read the Bible we find principles and promises that speak clearly to us. I’m not talking about a “name it and claim it” theology, where we find and verse that says what we want to hear or have and claim it as a promise from God. Rather, I mean when Jesus tells us in Matthew 6:33 if we seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, God will add everything we need to our lives, that as we put God first, He will see our daily needs are provided.
God speaks to us through prayer in many ways. In my experience, God has spoken audibly to me only a couple of times, but He often speaks in my Spirit when I pray. The temptation is always to speak to myself and call it God, but my discernment process involves being certain the “answer” I receive is consistent with God’s revealed will in the Bible. After all, God will never tell us something that isn’t consistent with what He has already said in His word.
God speaks through our circumstances. For example, I have often prayed God would use our home effectively for His purposes. Since Abby and Emmy moved out of the house several years ago, we have had a big house all to ourselves. We have hosted a couple of short-term house guests over the years, but last August when Pastor Joe Tung from Canada e-mailed me and told me their church had three teenaged girls who needed a home, I immediately sensed this was God answering my prayer. Of course, with such a major decision, Nancy and I needed to discern together that God was, indeed, calling us to become parents again. The opportunity to serve Him through parenting Teresa, Yukina, and Yumiko has been His voice speaking clearly through circumstances.
Finally, God sometimes speaks through other believers. When I was seventeen, and had accepted an appointment to West Point, I had one last opportunity to preach in my home church in Gipsy, PA. After the service, a close family friend, Shyrl Spicher looked me in the eyes and said, “I think you have missed your calling.” She didn’t know, that I knew God was calling me to be a pastor, but I was doing everything I could to avoid that call in my life. Her words echoed in my mind and heart for years. I knew God was speaking through her, and ultimately, I responded to that call.
In each of our lives, we can do our will or God’s will. God’s will is always better for us! I pray we will take the time to listen for and to God’s voice in whatever manner He speaks to us today.