| How Holy Spirit Guide Us (James W.Goll) | | | |
Do you remember playing the Hot or Cold game as a child? You would be blindfolded and some object in the room would be selected by the others for you try to find, blindly groping around the room. Your playmates would shoot, “You’re getting warmer. Now, you’re cold. Warm, warmer. HOT !” Of course, “hot” meant you were getting closer to the desired object, and “cold” meant you were going in the wrong direction.
Our inner person filled with the Spirit is like the Geiger counter that tells us whether we are closer or farther away. It helps us put all the pieces together. We learn to pay attention to an inner witness. We check in with the Holy Spirit, we listen and our spirit either bears witness, or it doesn’t.
Are you getting warmer – closer to what God wants to say? Or are you getting colder – farther away from it? Do pay attention to the signals.
- Ten Principles of Divine Guidance
Determining God’s will is a real art form. There are basic principles of which we each need to be aware. May the following 10 principles of divine guidance help you hear God’s voice, determine His guidance and, most of all, grow closer to God Himself.
1. The Will of God is Made Known in the Word of God.
Some people start trying to listen to the subjective without being grounded first in the objective. They don’t have a gauge to judge what they’re sensing, hearing, feeling or thinking. The Word (the objective logos) is to be hidden in our heart, and thus objectively informs us that a certain thought should be ignored. Remember, in all guidance, God’s Word is the final judge!
2. The Will of God Is Confirmed Through Circumstances.
God’s word in three places says He will confirm His word by the testimony of two and three witnesses. Circumstances can be one of those “witnesses” He uses! Circumstances alone don’t constitute divine guidance, but they can often confirm God’s will. Let the three lights of the promise, faith, and circumstances all line up in Jesus’ great name!
3. The Holy Spirit Speaks from Where He Dwells.
Where does God dwell ? Not only does He dwell in heaven, but He also dwells within us if we are children of God and we’ve been filled with the Holy Spirit. According to 1 Corinthians 6:19, “Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you.” Have you listened to your heart lately? What is beating in your heart? The Holy Spirit is heaven’s representative in all-true guidance.
4. Divine Guidance Comes from Meeting God’s Conditions.
What are the divine conditions that must be met for guidance to be unlocked? If we meet His conditions, He will surely guide us. Isaiah 58 gives us some of God’s requirements. This chapter speaks about honoring God and caring for the downtrodden, observing the Sabbath and not pointing the finger in accusation of others.
If our attitude toward God and our fellow human beings is not arrogant, then God’s corresponding promise is, “And the Lord will continually guide you” (Isa. 58:11). The conditions are listed first.
5. Peace of God Accompanies True Guidance.
Peace does not mean there is no storm. Peace does not mean there’s no warfare either. God’s peace creates a center of quiet in the midst of turbulence. True guidance from God does not push us; it bring peace and satisfaction. “The wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy” (Jas. 3:17).
Notice that James states that the wisdom of God is “unwavering”. It can be tested by time and tested by content. God’s guidance is not nervous or tentative. God is not the author of confusion but of steadfast and peace.
6. Much Guidance from God Comes Unnoticed.
Much of our guidance comes undetected. We’re often unaware that we are being guided. This is because we’ve asked Him to continually guide us. God wants us to do His will more than we want to do it. He is quietly releasing His thoughts into our sanctified minds so that we can make wise decisions. Humility is the key that unlocks God’s provision – even unaware.
7. Divine Guidance Does Not Mean We know All the Details.
Of course, that may not be what we want to hear. We prefer to be able to know everything, don’t we? It’s the same with God’s guidance. We want the rooftop view. But most of the time, we only get to look through the knotholes in the fence. There may be a special time when we see A, B, C and even a portion of X, Y and Z. But most of the time, we will only see what is in front of us. That’s just the way it is. It keeps us reliant on God and humble.
8. The Process of Guidance Is Not Always Pleasant.
The New Testament teaches us that we can have the “mind of Christ” (1 Cor. 2:16). But at times there is a noticeable gap between our own thoughts, opinions, reasoning and traditions, and His. We are often unaccustomed to His ways. We think He should do things in a certain order. God’s guidance might not seem to be very pleasant at the moment. If we choose His way over our way, it might seem painful for the moment, but the end result will be good.
9. Hearing God Speak Should Prompt Us to Action.
God’s word is compelling. If we act on it, we’ll hear more. In Daniel 11:32 we read, “But the people who know their God will display strength and take action.” I have a word for you, “What was the last thing God said to you to do? Have you completed it?” Let’s learn from the past and press forward into the upward call of Christ Jesus. Let’s get on with it! Complete the course!
10. Guidance Is a Skill to Be Learned over a Lifetime.
If we have heard God speak once, we cannot assume we’ve learned how to hear Him once and for all. We are on a life-time walk with Him. To really grow in the art of hearing God for myself, I need to be like John the beloved and lean my head upon the chest of my Messiah and Master, listening for the very heartbeat of God.
- Cultivate Friendship with Jesus
We need to cultivate a friendship with Jesus. Hearing the voice of God depends on having a lifetime relationship, and that can never be taken away. It is walking with the Guide Himself.
As we grow in God’s principles in loving Him, our internal Geiger counter will become more and more reliable. This will guide us to the source of power, even when the light seems dim and it’s hard to find the way. Yes, we are each given a Geiger counter of guidance. We just need to learn to turn it on and trust and obey!
(source: KAIROS magazine, July – August 2004,vol 6 issue 4).
