Saturday, April 4, 2009

How to hear from God.

God communicates with His children through the still small voice(1 Kings 19:11-12), inner witness of the Holy Spirit(Romans 8:16), visions(Acts 10:9-10), dreams(night visions), audible voice(Isaiah 30:21) and through circumstances(Acts 4:31),etc.

We can understand Heaven's communication system a little bit by looking at modern day telecommunications. At your TV/Radio station, a transmitter sends information to a converter, which converts the information to higher frequencies (that enables data to travel fast and far),and throws it into outer space(transmission channel). This information is received by TV/Radio sets receivers which in turn converts the high frequency data to usable forms of sound and video.

Heaven's communication works in like manner, the Holy Spirit is the transmitter conveying information from Headquarters at a divine speed which is received into the regenerated spirits of men. The mind of man is the converter relaying the message sent in an understandable and usable manner. The challenge to hearing from God is usually with our receivers(human spirits) which are not properly tuned to the right frequency. Below is how we can better tune our receivers:

1. Be born again: A person's capacity to hear the voice of God is greatly enhanced when he/she receives Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. His dead spirit is revived by the Holy Spirit which now indwells him/her. John 1:12, Romans 8:16.

2. Develop your spirit man: Regular fellowshipping with the indwelling Holy Spirit through Bible study and meditation, heartfelt worship, prayer, church attendance, etc helps the christian to discern the Holy Spirit's voice, promptings, impulses, impressions, etc from that of the devil and his own natural thoughts. Hebrews 5:14, 1 John 2:27.

3. Renew your mind daily with the Word of God: The more your thoughts align with God's thoughts, the easier it becomes to discern His voice distinctly. Our minds can either be a barrier or facilitator in hearing God depending on what we preoccupy it with. Romans 12:2, Romans 8:5-8.

4. Be obedient: God will only lead those who are willing to follow His promptings. Psalm 25:9,14

5. Overcome the fear of failure: There will be moments in your learning process that you will mistake your own natural inclinations as His leading. Don't get discouraged and stop the process. Continue till you can recognize that still small voice distinctly. Proverbs 24:16, Hebrews 10:39.

Friday, April 3, 2009

Observing Heaven's protocol.

Protocol according to Webster Dictionary means a code prescribing strict adherence to correct etiquette. Protocol infers procedure, the proper manner and conduct. Heaven has a protocol to be kept when we approach it. Whenever mortal beings satisfy or meet the requirements of Heaven's protocol, the result is always divine intervention. Below are some protocols to be observed anytime we are approaching the throne of grace:

Acknowledge the three personalities of the Trinity: God the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit must be duely acknowledged everytime we approach Heaven. We dial Heaven's number by addressing God the Father in prayers, our access is Jesus the Son who entered the Holy of Holies with His own blood and is seated now at the right hand of God(the position of power), and activation or motivation in prayers is by the Holy Spirit. Matthew 6:9-13, Hebrews 7:25-28, Romans 8:26.

Enter His Gates with Thanksgiving : Heaven's Gate is the outer court which is the first port of call. We are to approach this Gate with an attitude of gratitude, and also with a mouth full of thanks to God (Psalm 100:4-5). King David knew this too well, he had thanksgiving sessions to God seven times a day, and prayer sessions three times a day. (Psalm 119:164). This indicates that our conversations with Heaven should be much more of thanking God than petitioning.

Enter His Courts with Praise: Heaven's Courts is God's throne room or inner chambers. We access His inner chambers by extoling, magnifying, exalting and talking of His attributes. King David suceeded in entering God's heart(or inner recesses) through singing His praises. God called him the man that touched my heart (Acts 13:22). King David was deliberate with his praises, always crafting words and adjectives to describe God's greatness (e.g Psalm 19:1-4).

The most powerful person on earth is not the President of the United States. The most powerful person is the born again christian who knows how to observe Heaven's protocol and get Heaven to respond on behalf of his/her family, community, country, church, etc. Let us receive grace to access God's throne room regularly in order to make our world a better place.