Part 2 (2/2)

”When the circ.u.mstances of your life start to s.h.i.+ft,” I suggest, ”at least consider that it might be due to G.o.d. When you find yourself in a state of confusion or curiosity about the way things are going, go ahead and ask him if there's something he'd like to say to you. Open your hands, open your heart, heighten your attentiveness to any small way he might want to communicate to you, and then agree in advance that you will comply with whatever he says. Why not give it a shot? What's the downside?”

I have come to believe over time that it is the little acts of obedience that invite G.o.d's power to fully flow in our lives. When you and I prove ourselves faithful with the small whispers, he entrusts us with bigger ones. And when we follow through on those big ones, big kingdom results can be gained. This is what Ananias experienced firsthand, on that day when Saul became Paul. Back to our text.

ACTS 9:17a19 SAYS, ”THEN ANANIAS WENT TO THE HOUSE and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, 'Brother Saul, the Lord-Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here-has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.' Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul's eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, and after taking some food, he regained his strength.”

G.o.d had whispered specific instruction to Saul, and Saul had followed through. G.o.d also had told Ananias what he wanted him to do, and despite his initial hesitancy, that man too would cooperate.

I have read this pa.s.sage of Scripture many times, and with each reading I find myself trembling just a bit. Think about it: a highly intelligent (though completely misdirected) man-who will someday become a powerful force in the hand of Almighty G.o.d-is lying blind on a bed with no clue what he is to do next-other than to wait. If someone could only deliver a small dose of knowledge-a divine insight to him-the blind man not only will regain his sight but will eventually change the whole world for good. Ananias delivers that small dose of knowledge, and Saul goes on to write two-thirds of the New Testament; he plants churches that will have lasting impact; he leaves a legacy, not of bitterness and rage, but of boldness and righteousness and faith. Lost people are saved, believers are encouraged, churches are strengthened and entire communities experience times of great peace, all because two men hear G.o.d's whispers and have the guts to respond.

I imagine G.o.d cheering from heaven's balcony as he watched Ananias enter the home where Saul lay anxiously awaiting the arrival of a man he'd never met. ”You were so ecstatic about your license to kill,” I picture G.o.d saying to Saul, ”but I can do you one better than that! You're about to be granted a license to help millions of people throughout history live. You now have full access to grace. Full access to love. Full access to power. Full access to fulfillment. Stay close to me, Saul, and you will want for nothing. I will care for you. I will protect you. I will provide for you. And while we're at it, I'll even give you a new name. Paul-that's who you are now...Paul, my brand-new creation.”

Some time ago, on the heels of re-reading Paul's story, I held coaching meetings in Chicago with several pastors from across the nation. Typically we just talk pastor stuff-how to lead effectively, how to survive a down economy, how to balance the needs of disciples.h.i.+p amid very busy schedules-but that day I decided to start the session by taking a different tack. ”How did you come to faith in Christ?” I asked the group. We went around the room and each person told their story, an hour comprising fascinating tales of faith. Eventually, the last pastor took his turn. ”I came from a family that had no use whatsoever for G.o.d,” he said, ”but there was a devoted Christian family that happened to live next door.”

This Christian couple had received a prompting from G.o.d to invite his family to come to church with them. Not surprisingly, his parents said no. ”Actually,” the pastor explained, ”they said, 'We want nothing to do with your G.o.d, we want nothing to do with your church and we want nothing to do with you. Now leave us alone.'”

While his parents spewed their response at the next-door neighbors, this pastor, who was a young boy at the time, happened to be standing in the entryway of his house, hearing every discourteous word. He walked up to his dad, yanked on his dad's untucked s.h.i.+rt and said, ”Hey, Dad. I'll go.”

In a flash of insight, it occurred to the parents that if they allowed their son to go to church, they'd get free babysitting for much of the day. Suddenly, they weren't so opposed to the idea of these ”crazy Christians” coming to their home. ”You will?” his dad asked. The son nodded sincerely. ”Oh. Well, then...okay,” the father said, eyeing the Christian couple. ”I guess you can take our boy with you, if that's what you want to do.”

Every week-week after week-all through that boy's junior high years, the next-door neighbors stopped by on Sunday morning and gave the son a ride to church. Once the young man was in high school, he surrendered his life to Jesus Christ. From there he went to college, earned his degree and decided to start a church-a church that now includes thousands of wors.h.i.+pers on the east coast of the United States.

Again, it all traces back to one whisper that one couple chose to obey. They made it a priority to live life with one ear open to heaven, and since then, through their impact on one young man, many have come to faith.

And the same G.o.d who whispered a word to them wants to help direct your every step too. Just like the kings and prophets and apostles who have gone before us, you and I can hear straight from G.o.d. He will dwell among us, Exodus 29:43a46 promises. He will remain the Lord our G.o.d. And it is this G.o.d of whom author Dallas Willard writes, ”People are meant to live in an ongoing relations.h.i.+p with, speaking and being spoken to.”42 SEVERAL YEARS AGO AT A RESTAURANT, I WAS HELPING A NEW believer pray aloud for the very first time. ”Just close your eyes, think of G.o.d and tell him what is on your mind,” I a.s.sured this man. ”He will listen to you. Just say whatever you're led to say.”

He stared at me incredulously for a few seconds with a look that seemed to convey, ”But you're the pastor! Don't I have to hook something up to you? Aren't you going to sprinkle some magic dust or light some sort of incense to help me get this thing done?”

Essentially the guy was wondering if he actually had access to G.o.d. He knew what kind of life he had led, and it was a colorful one to be sure. What's more, he now understood just how holy and righteous G.o.d is, and he couldn't reconcile the two. ”Who am I, to be given speaking rights with the King of the universe?” he wondered. ”Why would G.o.d listen to me and talk to me? Why would he give me the time of day?”

Our lunch had come and my food was getting cold. I closed my eyes and bowed my head to communicate my silent response: ”Sink or swim, buddy. You're on your own.”

He sat there uncomfortably for a few seconds before his shaky voice finally piped up. It was a simple prayer but it was sincere. And when at last he said, ”Amen,” he opened his eyes, looked at me overjoyed, and said, ”I did it! I talked to G.o.d!”

I bet he remembers that prayer still today.

It's a concept I believe was at the heart of Jesus' message to his disciples when he preached the Sermon on the Mount. ”Ask and it will be given to you,” he says in Matthew 7:7a8. ”Seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; those who seek find; and to those who knock, the door will be opened.”

When I read that pa.s.sage, I imagine Jesus looking into the eyes of people who said they loved the Father and thinking, ”I only wish you knew him better.”

Jesus had taught his followers how to live for G.o.d, how to stack up treasure in the right places, how to avoid s.e.xual immorality, how to serve selflessly and so forth. But if only they really knew the heart of his Father more, their own hearts would absolutely melt. ”If you knew of my Father's strong inclination toward you,” I imagine him thinking, ”it would alter your entire spiritual orientation. You would give him all of your life. You would wors.h.i.+p him in spirit and in truth. You would trust him with your days and weeks. You would strain to hear his voice. My Father is available, he is approachable and he is waiting to talk to you now.”

Keep in mind that for the group to whom Jesus was speaking when he delivered his hillside talk, this news came as a real surprise. The idea that ordinary people could talk directly to G.o.d was staggering. It went against hundreds of years of religious tradition in which they needed an intermediary to talk to G.o.d for them. ”No priest is required?” they must have asked, just to be sure they had the new deal straight.

”No priest required,” Jesus' message confirmed. ”There are no hoops to jump through, no rituals to entertain, no sacrifices to tend to and no ceremonial purification rights to respect. You can come boldly before my Father's throne and receive an audience with Almighty G.o.d.”

I can only imagine the inner turmoil this caused for the crowd that day. Perhaps it is causing you a little trauma as well. Depending on what faith system you grew up in, it is possible that what you are reading on these pages seems downright illegal, or at least blasphemous and brash. But I promise you it's the truth of Scripture: because of Jesus Christ's work on the cross, there is no red tape between you and G.o.d.

He is available.

He is approachable.

And he stands ready to talk to you now.

The writer of Hebrews put it this way: ”Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus...let us draw near to G.o.d with a sincere heart in full a.s.surance of faith.”43 In the next chapter, you'll meet a handful of men and women who are striving to live this way. They are working to improve their batting average of hearing-and heeding-the whispers of G.o.d. Whatever aspect of life seems to be weighing you down today, you can bring that burden before G.o.d. What Jesus was so sure of, we can know for sure too. G.o.d is available. He is approachable. And he is ready to talk to you now. Your move!

CHAPTER 3.

EVIDENCE FROM EVERYWHERE.

ON THE MORNING OF SEPTEMBER 11, 2001, ROB CATALDO was copiloting a Boeing 767 for a major U.S. carrier, en route from Chicago to San Francisco. The day began as they all do when Rob is flying, with a preflight briefing with the captain, a thorough check of the aircraft and completion of the paperwork that authorizes them for departure. But soon enough, a.s.sumptions of ”all things usual” quickly would fade away.

Somewhere over eastern Nebraska, Rob received a message from his airline via the jet's...o...b..ard computer that a Cessna and a Boeing 737 had collided over lower Manhattan. The information seemed questionable at best. A quick check of the weather in the New York City area-bright suns.h.i.+ne and cloudless blue skies-made Rob wonder if the single-engine plane had wandered into New York's airs.p.a.ce without having permission from air-traffic control.

While his mind turned over the data, further messages would clear things up. Within minutes the dispatcher reported that there was ”trouble with a plane from our fleet.” Rob immediately searched for the flight records for the troubled plane, only to discover that those records had been secured by his company and were inaccessible.

”That's when I knew that something was terribly wrong,” Rob says. ”And the worst was yet to come.”

As Rob deepened his breathing and put his senses on high alert, another message suddenly came through. ”Every aircraft that is on this frequency will land at the nearest suitable airport as soon as possible,” came the instruction from air-traffic control. Simultaneously his airline sent their own instructions: due to suspected terrorist hijacking activity, every pilot was to secure their c.o.c.kpit immediately. Under no circ.u.mstance were they to permit entry to anyone. Throughout the company's fleet, pilots closed and locked their c.o.c.kpit doors and began planning their descent.

Rob and the captain had a perfect diversion airport in Denver, but it would take another hour to get there. That remaining hour is one they won't easily forget. ”My stomach is in knots,” the captain told Rob. But Rob felt strangely calm; moments before the fearful admission from his flying mate, Rob had received a one-sentence whisper from G.o.d. ”Rob, I have never let you down before,” the whisper said, ”and you can trust me that I never will.”

”G.o.d undeniably whispered to me that day,” Rob says. ”I should have been a basket case, but my Father gave me a deep sense of peace.” Rob flew to his destination confident in the truth that whatever happened, G.o.d was with him.

Note that for Rob and his teammate, the circ.u.mstances had not suddenly improved. The hijacking threat still existed, and the pilots still had to get the plane on the ground quickly and safely-which they did. But the team in the c.o.c.kpit were flying with two totally different perspectives: one fear, one faith. Hearing G.o.d's whisper matters.

Rob is part of Willow's congregation, and for years he has heard my challenges to live in every circ.u.mstance of life with one ear toward heaven. For him, doing so made a huge difference during one of the most frightening experiences of his life. Amazing!

Several months ago, I sent an email to the entire congregation at Willow, asking them to describe a time when they had heard a whisper from heaven and then to explain how they had responded to that whisper.

I sent the email on a Friday afternoon; by Monday my inbox was bulging with more than five hundred heartfelt replies.

Some of the respondents described the recent promptings they had received, and others ventured back in time, explaining that some of the most important, meaningful input they've been given in life happened years or even decades ago. The topics ran the gamut-vocational, relational, spiritual, physical, medical, financial and more. The tone of the whispers varied as well-sometimes G.o.d offered words of gentle affirmation, and other times he issued stiff challenges.

Far more women than men sent in their responses, which I found interesting and actually a little troubling. It may be that women are simply more willing email correspondents, but I fear that the ”I can handle anything” worldview claimed by many men gives them a bias against outside help-even when that help comes in the form of a whisper from G.o.d. So if you're of the male persuasion, I'm offering you a special challenge to take this chapter seriously.

As I soaked up the extraordinary evidence of G.o.d's interactions with us, I thanked him for speaking not just during creation and throughout the course of biblical days, but also ”today,” in our fast-paced, high-tech twenty-first-century world. A sampling of those modern-day whisper stories appears in the pages that follow, and my hope is that these nudges from G.o.d will help you make more sense of the nudges you receive. As well, I hope that reading these firsthand tales will inspire you to start living ”wide open” to G.o.d in all areas of your life. I've lumped them into broad categories-whispers of a.s.surance, whispers of admonition, whispers of action-for continuity's sake, but I trust as you plow through them, you'll see how uniquely G.o.d speaks to the men and women who have devoted their lives to him.

Whispers of a.s.surance

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