Decisions, Decisions: Is God Audible?

Just Ask God
When you have made a big decision like going to college or getting married, has anyone asked you, 'Did you get an answer from God? Did you ask God about it?' Or I've been told, 'Pray to God about it and wait for what He has to say.' I've been asked this question a few times when I made some big decisions in my life and I've always been caught back by it every time and asked 'What do you mean by that?' or 'I'm not sure what that means'. I have asked this because I have never read it in scripture that God says He will give me an answer. Are they expecting God to whisper in my ear or visit me in a dream and tell me the answer? I think that many Christians have caught onto this idea that God will give you a straight answer. I know they are sincere and not thinking that God is like some genie and will grant you all your wishes, but it seems like so many Christians are taking some things out of context.

For instance, in the Old Testament we see with Joshua and the Kings of the Old Testament God gave them instructions and revelation. Even in the New Testament we see this with Saul(Paul). And also the New Testament mentions that God may speak to you in faint murmur of some sort, but I'm not about to put that together as evidence that God does speak to us today as He did with a few in the past mentioned in the Bible. God had certain reasons for speaking with certain people in the Old Testament and the New. He was using them as tools for His plan. I don't doubt that today God uses people for His plan. I think that anybody is used in the purpose of His will for humanity. But as for today, I think we are getting past of what the scripture entails and what is left in the last revelation.

In the Book of Revelation (or John's Revelation) in chapter twenty-two it says that "I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book," If God had already finished His book then we don't need anymore special revelation and if anyone says so they just haven't read this part of scripture or they're not consistent with what God said.

Furthermore, when we are talking about making decisions God has His ordained plan for your life but that doesn't mean that you just sit around doing nothing with your life waiting for God to make the move. I have never had an instance when I was praying for His will and plan for my life that He actually said to me in a clear audible voice what I should do. Some people might argue that I'm putting 'God in a box' because they are deeply and emotionally committed to the view that God talks to us before we make a decision. The existence of the Bible and all of it's instruction is evidence that is not the way we do business. If God were to make all our decisions and tell us exactly what to do then that means we don't need to grow, we don't need to know anything, and we don't need a manual (the Bible).

On another note, If you do hear a voice, are you sure that's God's voice you're hearing? It could be your own thoughts or worse! Are you still confused after you hear this voice? How do you know it's Him? Are you overcome with peace? It's true God gives us peace in our hearts, but where does it say in scripture that He will do it by speaking to you? Just because you get some fuzzy feelings in your heart it doesn't mean God just spoke to you. It may have just been something God had been healing in your life or He has lead you to an understanding of something about yourself. He may have comforted you through another person or by remembering what His word says. Whatever the case, reader beware, God warns us that the heart of man is deceitfully wicked. Our feelings can be wrong and we can't lead our decisions based on feeling. If I based all my decisions on feelings nothing would get done. If I didn't want to work because I didn't feel like it, then I'd probably lose my job. Think about it, when you want to make a good decision, follow God's will by reading His Word.


Making Good Decisions in a Godly Way
Here's the first rule: If you want to make good decisions in a Godly way then you must be committed to the idea that it's not God's job to make the decisions for you. If it's God's job then you have to hear from Him then you don't need the manual. The scripture says that God will guide and God will teach and we presume that that means God will make all the decisions for us. But this is a fallacy that we don't want to teach others.  A lot of people suffer from this idea. I've had such a hard time in the past because people told me to wait and listen for the will of God. So many people suffer in making decisions because of this or make the wrong decisions by thinking that when they get an idea in their mind they will take it as revelation from God.

I'm aware of God working in my life. I've felt close to God, but I have never heard the voice of God as people are describing. There is more peace in knowing that God is in control and whatever decision you make, the good or bad, God will be with you and help you in every step as He promised in scripture. God's will is clear. He asks us to live the way He has commanded us. Live by the fruit of the Spirit. There is the list of things that a true believer embodies. Along with many other verses which I'll just leave for you to search on my other blog posts from the past. I know this is different from what I wrote about God's will in the past but I'm still trying to remain consistent with the fact that you can still pray for God to reveal His will but make sure you understand what that is exactly. I'm not talking about His plan or His choice for your decisions. You have to know how to make the right move by aligning it with His word.

We can't squeeze the information out of Him. God doesn't put His will into a cypher and expect us to sift and find out. We don't know His plan for us but we know what His will is for us because He has told us what it is in scripture. And we can have peace with that because we know that He is in control and beside us, and never forsake us, in every decision we make. God does guide us and God does teach us and we can find it all in His Word.