Something's Not Adding Up

[votivesoul]

Does anyone really think Ananias of Damascus poo-pooed his role in the church, complained about his ministry, worried that something was wrong with him, or thought God was upset with him because his only notable deed in the entire Bible was to share with Saul of Tarsus the good news of how to be saved?

Friend, have you not read how the Lord Jesus personally visited with him while in a vision and engaged him in a conversation in which the Son of God spoke no less than 92 individual words (per the KJV), while also listening to what Ananias had to say, and then addressing his concerns (See Acts 9:10-16)?

Seems to me Ananias had no such problems, complaints, worries, or concerns.

And yet here we are, vexed and overwhelmed trying to do so much for the Lord, desperate to even get Him to speak just one, single word to us...???

Something's not adding up.

[Esaias]

Who is being vexed?

[votivesoul]

Originally Posted by Esaias

Who is being vexed?

People I know, or have known, who've been constantly worried about not being able to hear the "voice of God" while still hammering away at trying to do, do, do as it pertains to church.

[votivesoul]

Originally Posted by votivesoul

People I know, or have known, who've been constantly worried about not being able to hear the "voice of God" while still hammering away at trying to do, do, do as it pertains to church.

I would have to assume, hopefully correctly, that my little sample of the Apostolic world speaks to some degree to the larger movement as a whole. As such, I would venture to say that there are a lot of people who are dissatisfied with their communion with the Lord, and are perhaps even subconsciously upset/mad at Him, that for all that they sacrifice and do for Him, that He seems distant and even silent.

[Amanah]

I see what you mean. The ones that most concern me though are the ones who feel that they have some sort of direct communication and revelation that is vastly superior to most other people, that most other people *just don't get it*

[Originalist]

Originally Posted by Amanah

I see what you mean. The ones that most concern me though are the ones who feel that they have some sort of direct communication and revelation that is vastly superior to most other people, that most other people *just don't get it*

I had a former pastor like that. His initials are JS.

[houston]

Super.

[Aquila]

People don't know how to listen to God. In fact, if one is "trying" to hear God they are not listening. Even the thought of "trying to hear God" will cause it to elude you. For you're affirming that you haven't heard or have yet to be able to hear. So, for as long as you are trying to hear from the LORD, you're not going to get much.

I believe that God speaks to us more than we realize. However, we are not trained enough to have the discipline necessary to hear Him or to realize that He is talking to us.

Here is what I was taught in a development group...

After a season of worship and prayer when you sense that you are "in the Spirit" follow these steps (contemplations should be done both before and after):

1.) Stop - Quiet your mind so that you can hear God's voice (Contemplate Habakkuk 2:1-2).
2.) Look - Look for vision as you pray - Through faith see yourself being spoken to by Jesus or being hearing from the LORD (Contemplate Hebrews 12:2).
3.) Listen - Recognize God's voice as spontaneous flowing thoughts which light upon your mind (Contemplate John 7:37-39).
4.) Write/Speak - Write down or speak out and share the spontaneous flow of impressions, thoughts, phrases, and images that come to you (Contemplate Revelation 1:10-11).

If this is done often enough, you'll soon become more familiar with the still small voice of God's Spirit that is speaking through His abiding presence in your inner man. At first, it feels silly. It can be conjumbled. But with time, you'll recognize a certain quality to a specific flow of impressions. It will be very unique. As you learn to silence your own mind, you'll begin to distinguish this still small voice with more clarity. Once you do... the adventure begins. For most, the biggest challenge is silencing the mind. It can be difficult to hear God when your own mind is just chattering away at 150 mph. You must train it. Discipline it. Silence it. Crucify it.

[aegsm76]

Originally Posted by Aquila

People don't know how to listen to God. In fact, if one is "trying" to hear God they are not listening. Even the thought of "trying to hear God" will cause it to elude you. For you're affirming that you haven't heard or have yet to be able to hear. So, for as long as you are trying to hear from the LORD, you're not going to get much.

I believe that God speaks to us more than we realize. However, we are not trained enough to have the discipline necessary to hear Him or to realize that He is talking to us.

Here is what I was taught in a development group:

1.) Stop - Quiet your mind so that you can hear God's voice (Contemplate Habakkuk 2:1-2).
2.) Look - Look for vision as you pray - Through faith see yourself being spoken to by Jesus or being hearing from the LORD (Contemplate Hebrews 12:2).
3.) Listen - Recognize God's voice as spontaneous flowing thoughts which light upon your mind (Contemplate John 7:37-39).
4.) Write/Speak - Write down or speak out and share the spontaneous flow of impressions, thoughts, phrases, and images that come to you (Contemplate Revelation 1:10-11).

If this is done often enough, you'll soon become more familiar with the still small voice of God that is speaking through the abiding Spirit in your inner man. At first, it feels silly. It can be conjumbled. But with time, you'll recognize a certain quality to a specific flow of impressions. It will be very unique. As you learn to silence your own mind, you'll begin to distinguish this still small voice with more clarity. Once you do... the adventure begins.

A - Good thoughts.
An additional thought is that God is far more interested in reaching people, than in giving us the next great "revelation" or our next great sermon idea.
That is what most of his speaking to me has been about.

[Aquila]

Originally Posted by aegsm76

A - Good thoughts.
An additional thought is that God is far more interested in reaching people, than in giving us the next great "revelation" or our next great sermon idea.
That is what most of his speaking to me has been about.

Amen!

It has been my experience that God doesn't talk much about "doctrine" or "doctrinal revelations". It's almost as though I get the impression, "Study, my child. Study." When I come to an understanding of something in Scripture I find that it helps me hear Him more clearly and it leaves me feeling strengthened, free, and at peace. And my understanding is always growing. I've been limited in my understanding and flat out wrong at times. But those experiences are so valuable because they served as stepping stones to greater understanding. For me, and I can only speak for myself, doctrinal understanding is typically reserved for study, not revelation. Oh, don't get me wrong, a revelatory thought, word, or concept might be impressed upon the mind to stimulate study on a topic. But beware, sometimes the LORD is like a teacher who proposes the error to motivate you to correct it. So, don't take these small doctrinal impressions and build a system around them without thoroughly trying them first. That's one reason why I love forums like this one. I often throw out some crazy impression I received and hammer it out through discussion with well studied men and women, and add these experiences to my study on the matter. Many times I've been left with far more than I bargained for. lol But that's growth! Praise God! Right now Bro. Blume is the ironworker I've chosen to hammer out thoughts on the Sabbath. He has given my MUCH to contemplate in my studies. We'll see were it goes in the long term.

When it comes to sermons, this is how I received them. Most people think I'm crazy, but I could "hear" myself preaching the message in my head as though it were a recording. I could hear the inflection of my voice, the points being made, the order they were presented in, and basically... I took notes! LOL My pastor (UPCI) at the time was beside himself when he looked at my notes because they were a bubble outline with the primary point in the center and the supporting points and texts in bubbles branched out from it, and any sub-points branched out from them. I started at 12 o'clock and worked my way around the central point until I came full circle and made altar call. A bubble might have a sing word like "Sanctification", and I'd just let it flow and speak as I had heard it in my head until I exhausted it and addressed on the sub-points, then I'd move to the next. It was very free flow. I'd have a second sheet with the full verses or passages I wanted to read to the congregation with a notation on the bubble outline to refer to the verse. I would often have a 45 minute sermon on just two sheets of paper, comprised of one bubble outline and a several verses of Scripture aside from the primary passage. I know it's weird, but that's how the LORD showed me to do it in a vision. It worked so much better than trying to read through and keep my place in a traditional written out Roman Numeric outline. It also allowed me to walk away from my notes and the thoughts flowed. I'd return as they'd begin to slow down on that particular point.

Most of the Lord's speaking is in relation to me and my issues, my family, and those I know personally. Encouragement, chastening, promise, rebuke. These are felt often. These have also flowed in our house church gathering in relation to issues in a general fashion, that that has sometimes proved to be far more specific than I realized in the lives of others. Sometimes a Word of Knowledge or Word of Wisdom will flow through phrases, impressions, or "snapshot" or "short film" like visions. One day my fiancé and I prayed over some money that was lost at her work and the LORD gave me a vision of the inside of their safe! The money was there, it had just fallen down to the right between two compartments and had a stapled packet of papers, that had also fallen, covering it. The vision was specific, right down to the color of zipped up pouch it was in. And the next day, that's exactly where she found it. Though visionary in nature, I classify that as a "Word of Knowledge". God has helped me find my keys and even alerted me to call my kids at exactly the moment I was needed. It is helpful to hear from God in our personal lives regarding what we might otherwise think is day to day business.

And yes, to answer the question I'm hearing in my spirit right now, sometimes I get impressions, snapshots, and visions about people I talk to on forums. But it is far stronger when they have an actual photo of themselves as an avatar. Images of other things, symbols, family, etc. often cloud the impressions or visions.

To answer any concern, there is only one regular on this forum that I sense a rather dark impression about. I don't know what it is and it could be something around him and not him directly. But I have found that I am not at peace dealing with it. Don't know why, just is. But most here have a heart of gold. Yes, many have wacky ideas and biases. Some also enter seasons of being well and not so well. We all do from time to time. But when something is hidden that disturbs my peace, or something is unseen in the life of another, I take note. If they are actually close to me in physical proximity, I'll try to connect with them. I'll then better discern if it is hidden sin, a Pharisaical spirit, or a spirit that is simply "around" them.

But that's my experience with this sort of thing.