If someone uses the phrase “God told me to do it” in their conversation, a lot of people would peg the person as weird, wacko or even worse. We’ve all read news accounts of heinous crimes committed by someone who was convinced that God told them to do it. So people move to the other extreme and even churches teach that God does not speak to anyone anymore. Oh, they say, he spoke in the times of the Bible, but not anymore, we’re on our own.
A little strange, isn’t it, that the creator of the universe is telling people to do horrible things or has suddenly become mute in the 21st century. The truth of the matter is that God is good and He still speaks today. The Bible tells us that the reason that God created people was so He could have a relationship with them. A relationship is defined by two-way communication. That communication with God is called prayer.
Now most people think of prayer as simply speaking to God, usually asking Him to do something for us. However, the Bible invariably shows a picture of prayer as two persons conversing, man talking to God and God talking back to man. Don’t you think the world would be a better place if people started listening to God a little more and to their televisions a little less? When you pray, have you ever stopped to listen? God wants to speak to you, but you’ve got to have an open mind in order to hear Him.
NLT John 10:27 Jesus: “My sheep recognize my voice; I know them, and they follow me.”