Hey everyone! It’s been 12 days that i’ve lived here in Chico, CA. i cant believe how fast and slow time can move at the same time! anyways, i wanted to try and wrap up this week for you all back home. it’ll probably be hard, and i may not be able to do it to completion, but hopefully some of it will speak to you. i know it’s spoken to me! ok so here goes, i’m going to try to diary it out for you day by day.
Sunday. January 14. 2007.
went to CityLight Church in Chico. the worship was really good, and the preaching was ok, encouraging but not amazing. one thing, the pastor used our DTS theme verse in his sermon. that was cool. (FYI, that verse is Jeremiah 33.3: “Call to me, and I will answer you, and show you great and might things, which you do not know.”) i went up for prayer about ‘future things’ and this super sweet lady prayed for me. i cried.
Monday, January 15. 2007.
in quiet time i sought revelation on Philemon 1.6. i still haven’t found where i want to be reading consistently, i’m kind of all over the place. “and i pray that the fellowship of your faith may become effective through the knowledge of every god thing which is in you for Christ’s sake.” i didn’t get a whole lot, frustratingly. i just kind of defined the terms. you know.
We started a lecture topic this week taught by a guy named Jeshu Ram. “Hearing the Voice of God.” it started today. a few thoughts from lecture: “obedience releases God’s presence, but we should never obey for results. We obey to be obedient and to please God, not because of the results of our obedience.” “From Ephesians 1.17-19. revelation is not complete without application.” “Revelation does not come easy, it’s like treasure, it must be sought out.” “From John 10.1-5, Jesus the shepherd. Shepherds break the legs of the baby lambs to keep them from wandering off and being eaten. The shepherd then mends the leg and carries the lamb on his shoulder until the leg is healed, all the while speaking to the lamb so it will recognize his voice. in the same way God sometimes breaks us and mends us so that we rest on his shoulders and begin to recognize the voice of God.” “God wants to speak to you more than you want to hear from Him.”
These were some spastic but really cool things that i learned today. oh, and i cried.
Tuesday. January 16. 2007.
This is Lindsay Wade’s birthday! Happy birthday Lindz! today in quiet time i went back to something i had started before i left, a study into who all has seen God, what they saw, and then what they did in response. i was up to Genesis 28, where Jacob has his dream of the ladder to heaven. His response to seeing God was threefold: first it says he “He was afraid and said, how awesome is this place!” he fears God as response. the fear of God is a good response when we have seen Him because a glimpse of Him should bring our concepts of Him in line. Second, Jacob set up a pillar of remembrance, to remember the place where he had seen God. i think that my pillars of remembrance are my poetry and songs, but i’m not super purposeful in putting up my pillars. i think it’s necessary for when the times get rough and we need something to boost our faith. Third, Jacob made a vow to God. This response i wasn’t quite so sure about, because his vow had conditions, like “God if you do this, i’ll turn around and do that.” but a vow nonetheless is cool because it’s devotion and commitment. anyways, those were my thoughts from quiet time. in lecture we talked about how God should be the center of all avenues of our lives. what i’ve really appreciated so far about DTS is that everything revolves around the relationship with Christ. hearing God’s voice is all about the relationship, the intimate conversation that God desires to have with us. good stuff. i cried.
Wednesday. January 1 7. 2007.
Spent quiet time in prayer for friends and family back home. it was a good time. In lecture we talked about the hindrances that we face in hearing the voice of God. Here’s a truth, “the character of God doesn’t change because of the circumstances in our lives.” some of the hindrances are:
lack of love for God and others
unbelief
unforgiveness
pride
callused conscience
idols
immorality
occult
disobedience
fear of man
busyness
ungratefulness
unconfessed sin
condemnation
fear of making mistakes
comparing
then we came to the living room of the lodge where the leaders had built a fire. we spent time in quiet asking God to reveal to us if any of these things were hindering our walk with Him and our ability to hear His voice clearly. as God brought them to light we wrote them down, then one by one got up and confessed them publicly and threw them into the fire as a sign of leaving them behind. it was really powerful. i cried.
Thursday. January 18. 2007.
in quiet time i meditated on Romans 8.19: “for the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God.” When Christ comes to set things right, all will be illumined and everything that was hidden will be revealed. We are all waiting for the revealing of God himself. i am a son (daughter) of God. that anxious longing is inside of me too. my anxious longing waits eagerly for…..
the revelation that i am a daughter of God? the truth of that fact? is that what my anxious longing is waiting eagerly for? i do wait to have it revealed to my that my true identity is as a child of God. and i agree that the anxious longing is inside of me. i yearn and eagerly desire revelation of the way things really are. Just some thoughts on that.
In lecture today, Jeshu, Bruce, and Stephen (the last two are staff members here on base) came in and ministered to us all in the DTS. it was a really cool time. i need to preface this. : )
we had worship first, and during worship i got this picture and sense that i was out to coffee with Christ. there we were, and i was sitting and telling God how cool He was and what i thought about Him. that was worship. then God told me to be quiet, and climb up on the chair with Him because HE wanted to talk to ME. He told me to wait patiently and just be satisfied with His nearness. : ) i was reminded later that this is my blog’s theme verse! that was cool. so i sat and waited patiently as most of the other people were ministered to. it was cool to just feel the closeness of my position with Christ and whisper in His ear my prayers for each one. and God spoke to me some of the same things that the speakers were feeling, which was confirmation that i can hear the voice of God. then it was my turn.
the first thing that was said confirmed what had been happening all morning, that i was waiting patiently and asking God what He wanted to say to me. then it flowed out. word after word of precious confirmation and truth. it was so sweet and tender. i don’t think that i can even begin to explain what happened, or list all of the things that were spoken over me, but if you email me for specifics i will do my best to give them to you! sorry. : ) needless to say, i cried.
Friday. January 19. 2007.
this morning in quiet time i spent the whole time trying to write down what had happened this week. then in lecture we took time and got quiet outside by ourselves and asked God two questions: 1. Lord Jesus, what do you think or feel about me? and 2. Lord Jesus, what are your plans and purposes for me?
this was a practical application of what we had learned all week, hearing the voice of God. this is where the title of this post comes in. the first thing that i felt God speaking to me was a line from a poem i had written to Him, that He was now speaking over me: “I speechless love your faithful face.” it blew me away. there were a lot of other things that i felt, but a lot of it was really personal and i’d rather not post it right now. maybe it will come. we all sat in a circle and shared what we had felt God spoke. i cried.
ok. so that’s my week in review.
i just want to encourage you all that God speaks, is speaking, and wants to speak more to you, each one of you. hearing His voice takes practice, and a willingness to trust God and step out in faith. it’s not some mystical thing that only happens to people who have known God forever and a day…..or just for their moms….but it’s for all believing Christians. God has things that He is probably saying to you and wouldn’t you like to know what they are! listen. take time in quiet. ask Him to clear your mind. make sure you don’t have any hidden sin confusing things. when you feel Him say something, when a thought comes across your mind, check it: does it go along with His word? does it glorify Jesus? does it match His character? is there a witness in your spirit? is there a witness with another person’s spirit? does it draw you closer to Jesus? if these things line up, step out in faith that you have heard God speak.
well it’s been a wonderful week of crying and learning and praying and listening. i’m so excited about what has happened this week. i’m sorry if this has been boring, and i’m very impressed if you’ve made it this far. i hope that through this Christ inspires you to listen for His voice. have a great week! email me! talk to me! i miss you all. love you!
peace --
kara
