God Asks, "Can You Keep A Secret?"

God loves to show His friends what is on His heart before He does things. He wants to be able to trust us with things that are important to Him; part of the process of getting there is entrusting us with secrets and seeing how well we handle them. And here’s how to handle the secrets of the Lord: Ask! “Lord, is this something you want me to share, and if so, with whom? Or is this something just between us?”  Silence The final and sometimes most difficult way the Lord communicates with us is through silence. We live in a culture and time in which our ears and minds are bombarded with information, noise and chatter 24 hours a day. Part of our learning to hear God will involve making a distinct effort to quiet our senses, often involving shutting the door, whether figuratively or literally, on both the inward and outward distractions that keep us from experiencing His silence. It is generally in knowing His silence that we come to recognize His presence. It is in His silence that He does His greatest work in, through and for us. And it is in His silent presence that we find our rest, and where He finds His dwelling place. 3. Response (WHAT TO DO with what you’ve heard) Ask! “Lord, what should I do with this?” Develop the habit of going TO THE LORD with your questions or for clarification in how to respond. Though the Lord may very well use others to speak to you, He is not obligated to, and reserves the right to speak to you in person. FIRST! Think of your closest personal relationship, or even your relationship with a co-worker or person in authority over you. What if your boss came to you and asked that a task be accomplished in a certain way by a certain time? Would you say, “Well, let me check with my pastor.” Or even “Let me pray about that?” No, you recognize the boundaries of the relationship and respond accordingly.