Lionheart

Being a young person, I hear people who I come in contact with always ask about ‘hearing from God’.  ”How do I hear from God”, “What is hearing from God?”, “How do you know God is speaking?”, “Is God speaking?”, etc–it varies.

This is huge in the college/young professional time of life but it is relevant to all.  People always want to hear a message or hear a talk about ‘How to hear from God’. These same individuals really get desperate about hearing from Him when it comes time to make a big decision, career choice, etc.

We always want the magic formula or the audible voice to just tell us something.  We are so quick to put the ‘hearing from God’ problem back on God with the excuse that He doesn’t speak anymore.  We have all heard the excuse, “Oh yea, God used to speak to people in the Bible, but He doesn’t do that anymore”.

WRONG!!  God still speaks.  God is constantly speaking for that matter.  The problem isn’t on His end, but rather it’s on ours.  We have dropped the ball.  We can’t hear God for the noise.  There are so many things that are going on–so many thing that demand our attention that we can barely even think straight.  We run through our day, crossing out things on our to-do list, consume a bit of food, pay our dues in our relationships, go to bed, and start it all over again the next day.  All the while–God is speaking the whole time.

It’s left up to us.  We have got to cut out the noise.  Get in His Word.  Spend a few minutes on our knees in prayer–and how bout this, don’t ask for stuff the whole time–just sit in silence.  You would be amazed at what God can do in our silence.  Let’s get our focus off of us and on Him and what He is saying.  The Word says that we know His voice.  It’s just left up to us being quiet enough to listen.

One of the great things about a blog is that you can exclaim facets about life that you are learning.  Right now, Jesus has really been dealing with and how I handle conflicts.  Conflicts come about in all shapes and sizes; they happen between friends, coworkers, and random people each day.  One of the key things to realize about conflict is that it should not rule any kind of relationship.  Conflict can have some very negative repercussions when not dealt with properly.  However, when approached carefully and handled tactfully, conflict can be very healthy to any relationship.  One of the big things that I have learned, as of late, is the fact that most conflicts are spawned from miscommunication or a lack thereof.  When you stop and think about it, almost every kind of conflict comes from this crucial facet.  Communication is of utmost importance to any relationship.  When communication is not shared, conflicts soon ensue.  This, like I said, can be very detrimental.  The critical importance of communication must be realized.  I have learned that there are two main facets to effective conflict resolution.  One is definitely communication.  If you relationship has lacked communication in the past, get to it.  Without it, the relationship will soon deteriorate.  The other important key is patience.  Patience, being one of the fruits of the Spirit, is so important for all aspects of each of our lives.  Before reacting, it is important to take a step back, take a deep breath, and be patient.  Many times, understanding will come about just as a result of not being hasty in a conflict or argument.  Another important thing to remember is that we are all human.  We are all working to be better individuals through Christ so let’s have some patience with one another.  Communication opens doors, and patience provides understanding.  These two are a dynamic duo at resolving conflicts and mending relationships.  Our relationships are too important for us to let avoidable and unresolved conflicts have control.  Furthermore we cannot let the way we handle conflict taint our representation of Jesus to others.  There are, of course, other things that could be applied to resolving conflicts; however, I firmly believe that these two are core.  With them, our relationships can grow and we can have a more positive impact on others around us.