Love your enemy, I was told.

I knew who God was calling me to love––Anthony, the man who murdered my dad––and I didn’t like it.

I cried out to God and said, Okay, God I get the whole forgiveness thing, but love my enemy? How am I to do THAT?!?

Immediately, His response came, Bring him a bible.

Now, I have only heard from God like this a few times. I’m certainly not one who claims that God speaks audibly to me, though I’d love it if He did. But instead, this was more of a thought planted into my mind immediately following my prayer.

And I knew it was a word from God.

In fact, it was a definitive command.

God Speaks

If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it is this: God speaks.

As a skeptic, turned believer, this blew my mind.

God speaks. To humans, nonetheless! [Tweet that]

Crazy. Right?

There are over seven billion people currently living in this world. Seven billion. And God chooses to speak, not just collectively to the whole of humanity, but to each of us individually. [Tweet that]

All throughout the Bible, we see God’s communication with man resulting in a relationship between God and His people.

In the garden, scripture says, God walked in the cool of the day with Adam. God spoke with Adam, and Adam spoke with God.

Noah, Abraham, David, Job, Elijah, and many others communicated with God.

We see this throughout the New Testament as well–-Jesus, of course, being the ultimate picture of God coming down to speak to man.

And here’s the thing: God still speaks.

He hasn’t grown silent. He still actively pursues man with unparalleled love, communicating that love and directing His children along the best possible path. 

But we need to listen.

We need to be expectant, anticipating a word from Jesus at all times because, after all, He’s always speaking. We simply need to get to the right frequency to hear Him. 

How does God speak to us?

There are many ways in which God chooses to speak to us. Understanding these ways may just help us become a bit more in tune to a word from God.

1. God speaks through creation. All throughout creation, we can find God’s truths displayed. Everything that God created says something about God and, consequently, something about us. Each natural process points to something larger, to a larger spiritual truth. God speaks through nature. Look for His divine hand, His divine messages.
2. God speaks through whispers. It seems that God mostly speaks to us individually through whispers. Subtle cues, if you will, that are intended to guide us. I find that God whispers to me all throughout my day. He guides me. He rebukes me. He encourages me. Listen for God’s subtle whispers. You’re sure to find them.
3. God speaks boldly. Though it seems to occur less often, God does speak to us boldly, from time to time. This is the “bring him a bible” kind of communication. And in my life, they seem occur at pivotal or climatic moments. This type of communication from God can look like my experience described above or I’ve heard others say that God actually spoke audibly to them. Additionally, God also communicates through visions. When God speaks boldly, there’s no need to try to listen. When spoken to in this way, you will hear. Still, don’t reason God’s message away.

Tuning Into the Frequency of God

Tuning into the frequency of God can be difficult. I know some believers who remain frustrated, wanting to hear from God, yet failing to recognize His voice.

Here’s what helped me.

I do not believe in coincidence. After all, we serve an all-knowing, all-powerful God who is in control of all things, right? Now, if God is in control of all things, are coincidences possible? In my estimation, no. They’re not.

So with that in mind, I view my world through a different lens.

I expect to hear from God. I look for God. I pray, but I don’t forget about my prayers. Instead, I expect them to be answered in one way or another. Sometimes, God says yes, other times no, still others His answer is not yet, wait on Me. But God always answers.

He always speaks.

God speaks through others. He uses the people in your life to help you, to guide you (though, of course, you need to ensure that you’re taking advice from sound, Godly sources).

God speaks through circumstances in your life.

God speaks loudly at times. And other times He simply whispers, but the point I’m trying to make is this: God does speak!

We simply need to expect a word from Him and listen.

{God speaks. We simply need to expect to hear from Him and listen.}

Question: How have you experienced God speak? Would you like to add to what I’ve shared here? Share in the comments.