God wants to speak to you
By Pastor Stef McDonald.
“For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” Hebrews 4:12 NIV
I LOVE the Bible! It’s not just a book. It is alive! It is God’s voice. And if you read the Bible with an open heart, God will speak to you. YES, YOU! You can go to God for yourself and hear his voice speaking directly to you. Everyday, God wants to speak to you, something fresh and relevant and helpful for your life.
“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” John 10:27 NLT
Following Jesus is really simple. Listen to his voice (through reading the Bible) and follow him (apply it to your life).
As we do this everyday, we grow in our relationship with Jesus (there is always more), and he leads us into the great plan he has for our life.
“Your word is a lamp to my feet (next step) and a light to my path (future).” Psalm 119:105 NKJV
God’s word feeds our soul! It lifts us, builds us up, encourages us, fills us, sustains us.
Why wouldn’t you want to read the Bible and hear God’s voice speaking to you, right?!!! RIGHT??!!!
Nevertheless, there are a lot of obstacles that can stop us or distract us from reading the Bible…
Obstacle: I don’t have enough time
Life gets busy and chaotic, and there are a lot of other more pressing things that HAVE to be done, and if reading the Bible is not a priority it will get pushed to last. And we all know that the last thing on our “to-do” list never gets done.
The answer is to put God FIRST in your day. When you put God first, it’s amazing how everything else works out. Before you open your emails, or Facebook, or Instagram, or start ticking off your to-do list, just take 5 minutes and read the Bible.
5 minutes, really? Is that enough? YES! There are no rules about how much time you have to spend reading the Bible! It’s not something we HAVE to do. It’s something we WANT to do, because we want to hear what God is saying to us. It’s exciting! I think a lot of people don’t read the Bible because they think they need hours of free time to do so. The truth is God can speak to you in 5 minutes, and 5 minutes is definitely better than 0 minutes. If you have longer, then of course go ahead and take longer. But if your reason for not reading the Bible is that you “don’t have enough time”, then I would encourage you to just take 5 minutes first thing in your day.
Obstacle: I don’t know where to start.
You’re not alone. The Bible can seem big and daunting, and a lot of people don’t know how to read it or where to start. Here are some simple steps:
Pretty obvious but… GET A BIBLE.
There are lots of great Christian resources out there, and they can all speak to you and encourage you, but there is nothing better than getting yourself a Bible and learning to go to God for yourself and hear what He is saying to you! The good thing is nowadays we can get the whole Bible on our phone in hundreds of translations for free! Download the free Youversion Bible App today, or if you want a free paper bible email us at admin@citywest.org.au
Start by reading about Jesus
If you don’t know where to start, start with Jesus. The whole Bible makes a lot more sense when you understand God’s greater plan to send Jesus to be the saviour of the world. Reading about Jesus will help you to understand who God is – His love and grace. So start by reading about Jesus in “the gospels” – which are the first 4 books in the new testament – called Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. (Click here for a Bible reading plan for the book of Mark.)
Start by reading one passage at a time
My youngest daughter Zara is 2, and anyone with kids will know that mealtimes with a two year old can be challenging. When she was a baby we spoon fed her, but as she gets older she now has to learn to eat by herself and feed herself. Trying to get her to sit still long enough to eat anything can be difficult. Often it would be a lot easier and quicker (and less messier) to just keep spoon feeding her, but she will never learn if we do that. We found that if we put a big meal in front of her she won’t eat much at all, but if we cut it up into bite size pieces then, one piece at a time, she will slowly eat everything on the plate.
When you’re starting out, the best way to learn to read the Bible is in bite size pieces. Each book in the Bible is split up into chapters and verses. Within each chapter there are passages, which usually start with a passage title. If you don’t know where to start, start in the gospels and just read one passage at a time. Why a passage? Because a passage is a whole story or thought, and so you’ll get the whole context of each verse that you read. Read one passage at a time, and listen to what God is saying to you. Then keep going through each chapter until you’ve read the whole book.
Obstacle: I don’t know how to hear God’s voice
You can read or study the Bible to grow in understanding and knowledge. It’s an interesting book and you’ll learn a lot of good things.
But there is another way to read the Bible. It’s reading the Bible to hear God’s voice. It’s called the Rhema word. It means the Alive word of God. Instead of just reading with your head, you listen with your heart. What is God saying to me today? And as you read, the Holy Spirit makes God’s word come alive to you. Certain verses will jump off the page and speak to you. It’s like God highlights them for you. You know in your heart what God is saying to you. It can be a verse you’ve read a hundred times before, but on this day it comes alive to you and speaks to you.
God’s voice can be very simple. The gospel (the good news of Jesus) is simple. The depth of God’s word is in it’s application to our life. “Love your neighbor” is pretty simple, but the depth comes as we apply it to our life. It’s simple, but it’s not easy. You can have a “deep revelation”, but if there is no application for your life then it’s not much good. Following Jesus is hearing the simple things God is saying to you, and then applying it to your life.
Obstacle: I’m not the ‘Journaling’ type
Journaling is writing down what God says to you as you read the Bible. Why do I need to write it down? It’s simple, if you write it down you will remember it. It’s a lot easier to apply it to your life if you can remember it. We consume so much information everyday. If you don’t write down what God says to you, you’ll probably forget it. It’s also good to be able to go back and be reminded and encouraged about what God has said.
You don’t need to write a lot. It can be very short and simple. (Unless you like to write a lot. That’s ok too.)
Date: (so you remember when God said it to you)
Bible reference: (chapter/verse)
Key thought/point
Application – how can you apply it to your life
Pray that God will help you to do it.
You can write it on paper, or as a note on your phone, or word doc on your laptop… whatever works for you. I have one friend who writes her journal in an excel spreadsheet. Whatever helps you remember what God has said.
God wants to speak to you
He cares about every detail of your life. He has a great plan for your life. Take 5 minutes today and read the Bible with an open heart and hear what God would say to you. Then journal – write it down. Try and make a habit of doing it everyday. If you haven’t been reading the Bible, don’t feel guilty or condemned. Just start today. It’s a new day. God wants to speak to you today!
When you hear God’s voice for yourself you will grow in your faith and knowledge of Jesus, and you will step into the great plan he has for your life.
Imagine a church where everyone was growing in their faith, and stepping into their purpose! Imagine what God could do in and through us to impact this city!