God Speaks to Us
And I Have Proof He Spoke to Me
If God were to speak to you today, would you even notice?
Furthermore, do you believe God can speak to you?
You may be thinking, “People who say God talks to them are one sandwich short of a picnic.”
Fair enough. Let’s disregard anyone who lacks a firm grip on reality — those folks who are not likely to be high-functioning, productive members of society.
If you are under the impression that anyone who claims God has spoken to them is a liar or a nut, you might as well stop reading now.
However, if you are at least curious and perhaps slightly open-minded, read on.
God has spoken to me. And I have the closest thing possible to proof.
Backstory: In graduate school, I met a Korean man who kept in touch. He later became chair of an English department at a Korean university. Meanwhile, I published a book, Meeting God in Silence (Tyndale), which was subsequently translated into Korean and published in Seoul (Word of Life).
In the early 2000s, my friend invited me to be a guest speaker at an international conference his university in South Korea was hosting. He said there was a slight possibility my travel expenses could be reimbursed afterward.
I was thrilled to think I could speak to the group as well as meet the publisher of my Korean version of the book as an added benefit. However, as a single mom with a modest income, I was hesitant to justify what might be just a costly ego trip.
My friends said, “Don’t go! You’ll get bird flu!” and “North Korea is next door!”
I felt torn because, on one hand, I felt led to go; on the other hand, going seemed too extravagant and unnecessary.
So I prayed for guidance and asked God to help me decide what to do. I honestly sought His will, not mine, and I said so.
No sooner than I said “Amen,” I heard an inaudible voice say, “Go look in the trash can at the post office.” I admit for a moment, I wondered about my sanity or at least overactive imagination.
I would have gone anyway to the post office as I did daily to retrieve my mail from my post office box. That day, first, I looked in the tall steel trashcan and saw something black and shiny peeking through a layer of discarded envelopes and papers.
When I brushed the letters aside, I discovered an old-fashioned-looking black shint cover of a photo album with the word, “Korea” in the upper left corner as well as a picture of the map. The inside pages were blank.
I am going to include a photo of the album here.
To say I was stunned is an understatement. Shocked. Flabbergasted.
I thanked God for the sign as I wondered if I might be dreaming.
I drove straight home and emailed my Korean friend, accepting his invitation. I charged my airline ticket to a credit card.
Fast forward: not only was the entire trip amazing, but also I did eventually get reimbursed for my plane ticket.
God can and does speak to us when we are open to hearing him. There is no doubt in my mind. Sometimes He speaks through Scripture or another person. His methods are many. We just have to be receptive and learn how to listen.
One priest I know was working in an extremely high-paying job for NASA. His boss said to him one day, “I think you are supposed to become a priest.”
Now I don’t know what events preceded that comment. However, the priest now says, “I wasn’t surprised that God was speaking to me, but I was surprised he was speaking to me through a Presbyterian!” And evidently, the boss was not the only person to make the same or similar comment until soul searching led the now-former NASA employee to join the priesthood.
The events that led me to write Meeting God in Silence involved extended stays in a convent and attending a few silent retreats. I realized that God speaks in silence; once we learn how to listen, we can internalize the silence in such a way we can recognize His voice in a number of ways. I wanted to share that discovery with others.
Jesus said, “My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me” (John 10:27). And there are many other references in the Bible to hearing God speak.
When Samuel was a young boy, he heard a voice calling his name, and he ran into his father’s room to see what he wanted. Eli told Samuel that he had not called him and told him to lie back down. The third time Samuel heard the voice, Eli eventually figured out the Lord was calling Samuel.
Samuel was told to reply “Speak, Lord, for thy servant hears” (1 Sam.3:10). And the Lord did speak to him about future events.
We are told that God sometimes speaks in a “still, small voice” (1 Kings 19:12).
I have known people to whom God has “spoken” in visual images, in their mind’s eye, so to speak.
There is no way to manipulate God into speaking to us or doing anything else. His ways are mysterious and beyond our ability to understand. Prayer can definitely be a two-way form of communication when we are open to a response.
Those who choose not to seek a relationship with God may never know what they have missed until it is too late.
A life that includes a relationship with the Living God makes life worth living. “Today, when you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts” (Heb. 3:15).
