Blog In Audio:
Greetings,
As leaders we are called to be an example to, inspire, and lead others into a path of connection with God and with His family in the earth. We are to grow in our connection, understanding, and in our testimony of knowing God. We have the responsibility of leading those in our God-given sphere of influence into becoming an expression of the family of God in the earth. Together we are called and empowered by the Holy Spirit to grow as the family of God. God’s family is not a family of exclusive rights. It is a growing family of invitation to know God’s love, increasingly experiencing an encounter with God that transforms our testimony to one of life and maturing in a covenant connection with God as our Father to fulfill God’s purposes in the earth. It is an awesome responsibility, being a believer in Christ. It is a growing reality of living, moving, and having our being in God. When we know God loves us, we hear Him in our hearts. Hearing God in our hearts is essential for life-giving change in our lives. Hearing God reveals His mercy and brings us into His grace. Grace is the power to change our lives. Grace is the substance of God’s presence in our lives. Grace comes at a revealing of Christ in us. Grace is the key is how we think. We must submit our soul to our spirit once we connect our spirits to God’s Holy Spirit. The beginning comes by experiencing His transformation in our hearts. We experience a change within that causes us to become what God desires for us to be. We cannot do the will of God without being the will of God. Hearing God allows us to become the substance of the will of God – spirit, soul, and body. The internal voice of God in our hearts transforms our lives from within.
Hearing God is not about receiving the right information in life. It is about being empowered for the right transformation in life. Much information can bring much confusion. God’s instructions bring the power of transformation; thus, they empower the hearer to do and become. This doesn’t mean that we don’t have to do anything in order to hear. Sometimes we have to position ourselves to do in order to hear. This is why it is so important that we learn what the general will of God is in our lives. When we choose to stand in obedience to God’s general will, we hear His specific will in our hearts. If we don’t excel in knowing the general will of God we make ourselves vulnerable to the will of self or the will of some external influence of deception. We must study to show ourselves approved a workman who doesn’t need to be ashamed.
2 Timothy 2:15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
We study to know the general will of God so we can clearly hear the specific will of God in our lives. The evidence of hearing is seen in the actions of our lives. Both hearing and doing are connected in the reality of faith. When we position ourselves to do, we become who we are meant to be. This is the proving ground for hearing God and the power of His grace at work in our lives. We do not become something by doing things but standing to do positions us for the miracle of God’s voice in our hearts.
Romans 5:1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; 4 and perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
Hearing God produces faith in our hearts. There is no gap between us and God. We can hear Him in our hearts. When we hear Him, we receive a revelation of Jesus Christ in our inner being and God grants us the power of His grace. The proving ground of God’s grace is the tribulation that comes against us. When we experience the pressure or the testing of life, we find ourselves persevering. It is not a matter of disciplining the flesh. It is a matter of revealing the power of Christ within us. Perseverance is a joyful endurance that comes from the voice of God in our hearts. This is the testimony that proves to manifest the character of Christ within us and this is seen as our hope of glory. It is our hope of change that comes from within when we hear God’s voice. The testimony is for our full being. God’s will is for us to receive the salvation of our whole man.
James 1:2 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. 4 But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. 5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. 6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
1 Thessalonians 5:23 Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
We can’t hate the flesh, beat up on the soul, and pursue the Spirit. We must pursue the Spirit, delight the soul in Him, and present our body as a living sacrifice to God. Hearing God affects all of our being. As leaders we must set an example that others can follow. Who we are as leaders must inspire those we lead to become transformed by the voice of God within their hearts.
Food For Thought,
Ted J. Hanson
Thanks to all who support House of Bread Ministry in our commission of reaching the nations and the generations with New Covenant Life and Grace. Your prayers and your financial donations are very much appreciated.
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House of Bread Ministry, 3210 Meridian St., Bellingham, WA 98225
