God speaks to his people
     1.   One of the titles God used in Old Testament was Jehovah ...(?) , the God who speaks.
               a.   God speaks to his people, individually and corporately
               b.   Isa 30:21 “Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a
          voice behind you, saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it.’”
                         i.   Specific direction.
                         ii.  Audible? “Your ears will hear.” Remember: Old Testament, people
               didn’t have HS living within them as we do.
                         iii. Relying on audible voice inferior to following inner leading.
               c.   Hab 2:2-3 “Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a
          herald may run with it. For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of
          the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly
          come and will not delay.”
                         i.   What God speaks to you will not always happen immediately.
                         ii.  Clear precedent for writing down what God says.
     2.   New Testament, same concept: God speaks to his people
               a.   2 Tim 3:16-17 “All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching,
          rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may
          be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
                         i.   God-breathed; “breath” = “pneuma”; breath, wind, spirit. God speaks
               to us through the HS
                         ii.  What you receive from HS not same quality as scripture, certainly not
               sacred or infallible.
                         iii. Why not? Has God become careless or casual?
                                   (1)  Problems with recipient
                                   (2)  Purpose: scripture relevant to all people at all times
                                   (3)  But same HS speaking to you
               b.   2 Pet 1:20-21 “Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of scripture
          came about by the prophet’s own interpretation. For prophecy never had its
          origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along
          by the Holy Spirit.”
                         i.   Even prophecy must be judged
                         ii.  1 Cor 14:29 “Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should
               weigh carefully what is said.”
                         iii. Other prophets should weigh carefully, but also other believers.
               c.   Scriptures are inspired, literal word of God
                         i.   66 books by 40 human authors over thousands of years; inspired by same
               Holy Spirit
                         ii.  more we learn about structure of original text, more of divine signature
               we see
                         iii. Structure: biblical numerology, hidden codes, theomatics (words &
               phrases with same numeric equivalents relating to same topics)
                         iv.  no way these structures could have happened by accident; requires
               computers for us to discover many of these structures
               d.   God speaks to his people
     3.   God speaks to you
               a.   Again, what you hear from God is not divinely inspired to same degree as
          scripture, but same God.
               b.   This is why we must test what we hear.

This course
     1.   Emphasized not just hearing God’s voice, but knowing it.
               a.   I suggest all believers hear God speak; we just don’t realize we do.
               b.   Problem: we’re not trained to discern, to recognize when it is God speaking to
          us.
     2.   Addressed two levels of hearing
               a.   Specific words; including phrases and sentences
                         i.   Applies to praying and “hearing” God reply
                         ii.  Also applies to journaling
                         iii. Used journaling exercises to demonstrate that God does speak to you, is
               concerned about every aspect of your life.
                         iv.  But journaling is not the ultimate; ultimate is dialoging with God “on the
               fly,” not stopping to write everything down
                         v.   Several benefits to journaling
                                   (1)  Durable record; evaluation, reminder
                                   (2)  Builds confidence in your ability to recognize God speaking
               b.   Nonverbal forms
                         i.   Gut feelings, impressions, hunches, ideas, mental images
                         ii.  Practice following nonverbal leading; develop skill and confidence.
                         iii. Don’t insist that God speak to you in English words; allow him to use
               nonverbal forms, too
               c.   Because of our differences, we’re more inclined to follow God one specific way
                         i.   Imbalanced, limiting God to your comfort zone.
                         ii.  Learn to follow him whether he interacts with you verbally or
               nonverbally; each has its benefits.

Have volunteers read select entries from their journals. Discuss as appropriate.

Questions and Answers, Observations.

Exercise
 Write a short love note to the Lord, then record his response; continue recording
dialog.