A Warm Welcome To Susan Aken
Hi, Susan tell us a little about yourself and your Bible study.
I’m waiting for that phone call from God.
Moses, the man God called to lead the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt,
spoke to God face to face. Saul, who wrote much of the New Testament, met Jesus
on the road to Damascus and heard Him speak audibly. How often do we wish God
would communicate so directly with us? We want clear directions.
We do have detailed guidance from Him in His word, the Bible.
To truly understand God and His will it’s crucial to know and comprehend
Scripture. God never leads us contradictory to His word and His revelation to
us is complete. To truly understand God and His will, it’s crucial to know and
comprehend Scripture. God never leads us contrary to His word and His
revelation to us is complete.
The first step to hear from God is to know the Bible well.
He most often speaks to us through its message.
We don’t see God’s face, but we can still talk to Him directly. We can pray
anytime, anywhere, and tell Him whatever is on our hearts bringing any request
to Him. He tells us to pray about everything and to ask Him for anything
(Philippians 4:6-7). That doesn’t mean He’ll always answer as we want but He’ll
do what’s best.
With faith, we study and obey His word seeking Him in prayer, and He directs
our steps.
What about those who say, “God told me to do such and such,” God told them
how much to give, where to serve, or whom they needed to reach out to? He does
speak to our hearts when we are open to Him. But how do we know when it’s Him?
The Holy Spirit moves and speaks to us as He wills. But we need to be
listening with open hearts and believe it is Him by faith.
As I was singing praise to God in church one Sunday, the thought came, “I
want you to come early on Sunday mornings to pray for the church.” I dismissed
it because I enjoyed attending church with my husband and son. I didn’t want to
get up earlier and come alone. But I heard the message again the next week and
the week after that. I felt God telling me to invite others to join me each
Sunday morning to pray. By the third time, I started bargaining, “What if no
one else comes?” God answered, “I want you to pray even if you’re the only
one.”
These were thoughts. I’ve never heard the audible voice of God. How did I
know it was Him speaking? First, it was in line with His word. Second,
it was persistent. I would never come up with that plan on my own. And
finally, I knew it was God because He gave me the grace to follow through.
I think we make hearing from God more difficult than it needs to be. He’s
always speaking to us through the Bible, nature, other believers, and in our
thoughts. The problem is we’re often distracted, not listening, or avoiding His
message out of fear. He’s always speaking to us through the Bible, nature,
other believers, and in our thoughts. The problem is we’re often distracted,
not listening, or avoiding His message out of fear.
We can come to Him in faith, trusting Him to speak, and knowing He
is good.
Scripture tells us, “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for
whoever would draw near to God must believe that He exists and that He rewards
those who seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6, ESV). In other words, when we seek Him,
through prayer, meditation, and Scripture reading, we can trust He’ll reveal
Himself and His will to us.
Let’s talk about this! How has God spoken to you recently?
Are you willing to hear what He has to say?
About Unshakable Unbreakable Joy: A 10-Week Bible study:
We
can experience unshakable, unbreakable joy no matter the situation because true
biblical joy isn’t dependent on our circumstances. Joy is a gift God gives us
come to know Him better and deepen our intimacy with Him. This study helps
women experience the abiding joy of an ever-deepening relationship with Christ
and reliance on His grace.
A
ten-week study with:
- Weekly
video sessions
- Group
discussion questions
- Take-home
lessons
Buy it on Amazon HERE.
An Oklahoma native who has lived in Nebraska since 1987,
Susan has been in public education for over thirty years. She and her husband
have one son and a daughter-in-law. She is a contributing writer to Wholly
Loved Ministries. Besides writing she has a passion for sharing Jesus through
special needs and prayer ministries. She enjoys time with family, reading,
photography, movies, walking in nature, and a nice cup of tea.
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