Hear From God Yourself

"Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Harran.

When he reached a certain place,

he stopped for the night because the sun had set.

Taking on of the stones there,

he put it under his head and lay down to sleep.

He had a dream in which he saw a stairway

resting on the earth,

with its top reaching to heaven,

and the angels of God were ascending 

descending on it.

There above it stood the LORD,

and he said:

'I am the LORD,

the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac.

I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying.

Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth,

and you will spread out to the west and to the east,

to the north and to the south.

All peoples on earth will be blessed through you

and your offspring.

I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go,

and I will bring you back to this land.

I will not leave you until I have done

what I have promised you.'"

Genesis 28:10-15

I'm sure Jacob grew up hearing of the promise of God from his father, Isaac, who heard it from his father, Abraham.  Did the power of it fade with each generation until it became a mere legend?  Maybe.  At least until Jacob heard from God for himself.  That personal word from God changed everything for Jacob.

It's the same with me.  I often read about the promises of God recorded throughout the Bible.  Until I establish my own relationship with Him, however, hearing from Him myself, it is only a story written in a book.  When I do begin to receive that personal word from God, it changes everything!

Commit

I love watching the butterflies and hummingbirds busily gathering nectar in my flower garden.  While they enjoy the fruits of my labor and seem to feel right at home there, they did nothing to establish the flowers.  It was my hand that planted the seeds, watered the ground, thinned the seedlings and fertilized the plants.  They simply enjoy what I have created and accept it as their own feeding place.

In a similar way, Jacob did not choose God.  He grew up hearing about God and the promises He made to his family.  He knew how God had chosen his people as the Lord's very own, but it wasn't until Jacob heard from God himself that he committed his life to the Lord.  He didn't acknowledge the Lord as his own God until this time, kind of like the way the butterflies call my garden their home.

I am also chosen by God to live for His purposes.  (John 15:16)  Until I commit my life to Him, however, He is only a far away God about whom I can read.  Even though the promises of God still stand, I have not made them my own until I acknowledge Him as my own God.  Once I enter into that personal relationship, as Jacob did, everything I know about God becomes personal as I accept Him as my own.

Instead of just hearing about His love for mankind, then, I experience the way He cares enough to comfort my troubled heart.  While I used to only read about the way God provides a way where there seems to be none, after I make Him my own God I see it for myself.  In the place of learning of God's presence in the lives of many, I begin to see His power working through me as I commit myself to Him, calling Him my own.

Hearing from God on a personal level brings about a commitment to Him as my own God.

Establish

It used to be just a patch of ground, ordinary in every way.  There was nothing special about the rocky soil that crunched beneath his sandals.  It was the same as all the land around him until God showed up.  The presence of the Lord made the place where Jacob dreamed of the ladder reaching up to heaven as sacred, so Jacob gave it the name of Bethel, meaning "house of God."

In a similar way, I am just an ordinary woman.  There is nothing special about me that sets me apart from anyone else.  The presence of God's Spirit within me, however, transforms my ordinary body into His temple.  For this reason, I can think like Jacob did and set myself aside, establishing my life as a holy place; not because of anything I have done but because the presence of God makes it so.

For this reason, everything I do becomes important.  How I spend my time reflects on the One to whom I've committed my life.  Since God goes with me wherever I go, I must ask myself if I honor Him in the places I choose to frequent.  The people I call my friends will either share my reverence for God's presence in my life, or they will degrade His holiness.

Hearing from God on a personal level leads to the establishment of my body as a temple and my life as an opportunity to worship Him.  (Romans 12:1)

Pledge

He gave the expected offering, but it wasn't accepted as he had hoped.  Instead, the fruits of his labor in working the soil were cast aside as offensive.  Cain grew angry, wondering why the Lord would look down upon his gift. (Genesis 4:2-4)

Cain's heart was in the wrong place.  Instead of giving what the Lord expected, he offered what he thought was a good substitute.  In his mind, the gift he gave was the best of what he had.  From God's perspective, though, it was simply an act of disobedience and willfulness.

I often carry the same attitude as Cain.  Instead of seeking to give my best to God, I settle for offering what I have left over.  The time I spend with Him is fleeting and squeezed in between other commitments   The money I offer is what's left over after I pay all my bills.  The service I commit to is only what feels comfortable to me because I would never agree to do anything I don't feel qualified to carry out.

From God's perspective, however, my heart is in the wrong place.  Instead of trusting Him and desiring to please Him in all things, I do only enough to get by.  A heart devoted to God will place more emphasis on spending time with Him in His Word, will set aside His money as soon as I get paid, and will go wherever He calls me to work, despite my feelings of inadequacy.  In short, giving to Him my first fruits in all areas of my life shows I trust Him enough to pick up the slack.

Hearing from God on a personal level gives me the chance to offer the best of what He gives me back to Him.

I have heard a lot about God over the course of my lifetime.  Until I heard from Him myself, though, it was only a collection of stories about a far-away God.  Now that I know Him on a more intimate level, I have the desire to commit my life to Him as my own Father, establish my life as His place of worship, and to pledge the best of that which He blesses me back to Him.  These are the ways a personal word from God changes my life.

As I begin this day, it is my prayer that I can honor God with the choices I make today.

When do I do things out of habit instead of consciously seeking to please God?

How am I dishonoring God in the choices I make?