God speaks in the Bible. He still speaks today. He reaches out to guide us, reassure us, put us through refining trials and wonderful times of blessing. For myself, I don’t hear an audible voice. Mostly, it’s a kind of ‘knowing’ that fills me with calm and leaves me confident that, come what may, I can safely place myself in His hands.
How do you hear Him? Let me know in the comments or message me.
Explore with me the significance of some remarkable ways God has revealed himself and what these interactions add up to.
Hagar: The God Who Sees Me
Hagar was the Egyptian maidservant of Abraham’s wife, Sarah. Her story in the Bible demonstrates that God’s compassion is for non-Jews, as much as for Jews.
As Hagar fled mistreatment by Sarah. an Angel of the Lord met her in the desert. Perhaps this was Jesus, already walking on earth as God’s angel. We are not told what he looked like, but he spoke in an audible voice that she could understand.
He comforted Hagar and told her to return to Sarah. He also prophesied to her about the son she was expecting, fathered by Abraham.
“You will give birth to a son.
(Genesis 16:11-13)
You shall name him Ishmael*,
for the Lord has heard of your misery.
He will be a wild donkey of a man;
his hand will be against everyone
and everyone’s hand against him,
and he will live in hostility
toward all his brothers.”
* Ishmael means He Will Hear God.
Hagar’s response, “You are the God who sees me,” is well known. We all seek assurance that God ‘sees’ us. This encounter took place at a well whose name translates Well Where I Saw the Living One.
According to the Bible, this well is there ‘to this day’, in the desert area of Beer Sheva.
Moses and the Burning Bush
In Exodus 3:1-6, God appears to Moses within a burning bush. Miraculously, the bush is not consumed, and the fire is not extinguished.
God speaks from within the bush, engaging in conversation with Moses, who is reluctant to accept the weighty task God has for him.
Fire is often associated with holiness and purity. God’s presence in refining fire shows us His nature, refined and set apart from a sinful world. It cannot consume Him.
His light burns brightly, like the flames of the bush. God, highly visible, draws Moses’ attention. Curious, he draws near.
The fire also symbolizes the kind of support— light, warmth and energy— God will provide for Moses as He leads him.
It also represents the plight of the Israelite slaves who, although they were ‘burning’ under Egyptian oppression and bondage, were not consumed.
Through Moses, God would deliver them.
To this day, many Jewish festivals of thanks, including weekly shabbat, involve kindling lights that sanctify the moment by inviting God’s light to be present.
Elijah and the Still Small Voice
Elijah sees a very different face of God in 1 Kings 19:11-13.
He first hears a mighty wind, but God is not in the wind, nor is He in the earthquake that follows.
God finally comes to Elijah as a still, small voice, a whisper carried on a gentle breeze.
The message for us all is that God is most likely to come to us in our quiet or meditative moments, in gentle and subtle ways.
We should look for Him in the small details, (see 5 below).
Mary of Nazareth
The mother of Jesus had a profound encounter with God when the Angel Gabriel told her that she would bear God’s son, (Luke 1:26-38). Despite the shame that an unwed pregnancy, as it would appear to her neighbours, would bring, upon both Mary and her family, she was willing to do God’s will: “Be it unto me as You have said.”
She is a great example of accepting what God has for us, however challenging.
And Everyday Folk Like Me
This is a section from my memoir, She Does Not Fear the Snow. It was our first Christmas for Butch and me. I was in England and he in Canada. We vowed to one another never to spend Christmas apart again.
“Walking alone on Christmas Eve along an old, tree-lined track that has an ancient farmhouse and a row of workers’ cottages, the throb of traffic is a million miles away and the birds are singing their little hearts out.
Out of the sky, a white feather floats down. I put out a hand to catch it. It is soft and pristine, cupped in the palm of my black glove, like a snowflake. I’m unsure what kind of feather it is, goose down perhaps.
I squint up at the sky, but no bird is in sight. It’s about 4 pm and already grey and gloomy up there.
The feather feels like a gift from God, a confirmation just for me that He’s here. I feel Him smiling and saying: Keep up the good work; you’re doing good down there.”
In Summary
God loves to reveal Himself to people whether in the Bible or not. He likes to communicate messages and share his plans and intentions. He likes to reassure us and impart His wisdom.
If we listen, He will guide us in the way we should go.
He has shapeshifted, manifesting in the course of this article alone as angel, fire, a whisper and a feather.
Perhaps the angel is Jesus himself…
He invites Bible characters and us to interact with Him as He shows His love, power and, betimes, His sense of humour.
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Sitting in church during a silent prayer session, head bowed and praying, Lisa sitting to my right, whispered to me that her daughter was in the cloakroom and had just attempted suicide, ‘please pray’ she said and quietly left. II sat praying, Seated on the aisle, no one on my left side, when a single drop of liquid dripped onto my left lower arm, I looked and saw a single drop running off my lower arm. It felt like the Lord shedding a tear for Lisa’s daughter. There was no explanation for this liquid on my arm. I looked around and no one was close enough, the ceiling of the church was four times the height of a normal house. I was grateful that He saw us and felt Him say I shed a tear with you. I knew Lisa’s daughter would be okay. Soon Lisa returned to fetch her coat and bag, ‘ good news, she is fine and I will see you later.’ She whispered as she left. Thank you Jesus. He sees everything!
What a beautiful testimony, Lynne. Your story is very moving. God bless you and Lisa and her daughter.
Thank you for sharing this piece and a portion of your story, Bobbie. I’m inspired!
I am glad you found it uplifting, Laura. God bless.
I so love this topic Bobbie, and never tire of hearing the testimonies of how He speaks or reveals Himself to us in such a personal way.
Thank you for sharing the scriptures and your own experience with us.
Thank you for your enthusiasm and support, Gaetane.
Thank you, Bobbi for the Bible stories shared in this blog and how God was heard in a gentle way in each story plus your own story. Reassuring to know God still speaks to His people here on earth. As you mentioned, we just need to pay attention and expect the unexpected!
I am really glad you enjoyed it Faith and that it encouraged you.