Listening for the voice...

I am diverting from your steady diet of pop culture and political commentary for selfish ends. This week has been absolutely insane, due to the proceedings that are happening in my own life. As many of you know, I currently work at a newspaper on the North Oregon Coast... however, lately, several other opportunities have arisen. Some of these are enticing, while others are just downright scary (as far as packing up and going THERE).

Such life-changing, career-rocking decisions bring to mind a key question: How do we listen for the voice? The voice of God... because, I mean, if we're not listening for the voice, then we are at the mercy of serving the purposes of this System, right? If you're not combating the System, you are surely supporting it (at worst), and accepting it (at best). We have no Oracle, like in the movie The Matrix, but we do have several methods of determining the Divine Will.

We have:
1) The Bible. Sure, many expect that these are old stories about old people in old times, but what we learn from this book (and, really, all histories) is that the human experience is cyclical, and that we all relate to certain situations. God is a non-changing God, and if we find some conflict in the Word that resembles ours, it's amazing how He responds to us in similar ways as He did those long ago. Also, the Word is a great place to pick up tidbits of wisdom (for example, based on the Bible, I know God wants me to think about ministry opportunities more than financial gain).

2) Other "unplugged" believers. The Spirit works in mysterious ways, and many times, He will send us another believer who has something to tell us that encourages us, or brings up something we hadn't thought of before. We weren't meant to take part in this war alone. Like a soldier shares his ammo when another is out, so does a believer share his insight when one's mind turns to mush.

3) The still, small voice. Conscience can be shut up quite easily. We tell it to take a hike all the time. But if we hear what God is saying to our conscience (SO HARD TO HEAR), we might be more apt to understand what we've ascertained from the above 2 methods.

4) Circumstances. It's not to say that perserverance doesn't have rewards, but I've always been a fan of the phrase, "If God brings you to it, He'll bring you through it." If something seems impossible, you have to question if you're acting outside of God's will. If all the signs say "Yes, continue regardless," then know you will perservere. But if the door is clearly closed, as they say, there's no use trying to be a crobar to God's adamantium sealed-shut door.

These things and more I will consider this weekend. Pray for me, those of who you do, and pray that the right choice will be made... so I can continue in the fight from the most strategic positions. ::MH::