God's directions

Can I give you a tip? If you pray for God's guidance, pursue it. Don't let your own thoughts, ideas, feelings, and hesitations get in the way. If you feel you've "heard" or "felt" something from God, pray for Him to confirm or reject it during your daily Bible time. Keep praying for His will in your life while you seek His direction. But keep your eyes open to every clue God might be sending you!

Here are some of the places I tend to get God's direction (note: these aren't foolproof or genie-like. You can't just consult one of these sources, take the teachings, and say, "Oh, well, that's what God says!" Generally, however, you're good to go if something stands out to you like an alligator would in Central Park, if you really don't like the message you're getting (that confirms that it's not YOUR voice you're hearing), if you feel like your mind was just read word-for-word, or if you feel spiritually slapped in the face. But of course it doesn't have to be as radical as that. Also, when I'm looking for God's direction, I try to not tell many people about it. That way, I know it's definitely God who coordinates the advice I get! Finally--and I know, this is a whole paragraph inside parentheses (isn't it awesome?) make sure you pursue each of these factors on a regular basis, not just when you think you need God's leading. You need God's leading ALL THE TIME.)

1. Daily devotional time. This is crucial. You can't just talk to God; you also have to listen. Right now, I'm going through Daily Thoughts for Disciples by Oswald Chambers. I read one Bible verse and one paragraph devotional each day, and almost every message so far has exactly pertained to what I've been going through or has been something I needed to learn. 
2. Parents. You may not like this one so much, and I would understand that. Teenagers don't always get along with their parents. But whether or not you have a good relationship with your parents, God has called you to honor them. Many times this involves obeying them even when it's really really hard...personally, I tend to get some of my clearest directions from God through my parents' rules. Trust me. They really are there for your good.
3. Between Parents and Church is another category I want to throw in here: mentors! Having Christian ladies who you can talk to and pray with is invaluable. And just 'cause you have great parents doesn't mean you don't need mentors, and just 'cause you have a mentor doesn't mean God's gonna give you just one. I have a fabulous mom, and I still know five other women at church who all are amazing, godly women (most were my small group leaders at one time or another) who will pray with me, encourage me, and support my journey with God. I didn't put this one in bold because I wouldn't say that the leaders themselves usually end up giving me direction so much as they end up supporting me and praying with me when I find and need help following God's direction.
4. Church. Wow. I cannot emphasize this one enough. Church is on par with the first two factors. If I need to hear from God by reading His word and I get some of my clearest direction from my parents, I almost always receive instruction from church exactly pertaining to what I need to hear. Yes, even when the message is something as simple as salvation. Yes, even when I already have all the Bible verses in the message memorized. Yes, even when I'm hearing a message for the second time. Go to church. GO TO CHURCH.
5. Friends.  You have to be really careful here, of course, because friends can be both good and bad influences. I don't usually specifically ask for advice from friends...rather, God's direction through friends (for me, at least) tends to be the stuff that I don't expect. Like when one of my Christian friends just randomly texted me a ton of Bible verses, which happened to be the same verses that I'd read in my devotional that morning, which happened to address my struggle with my imperfection (see this post). Or when AbiF posted song lyrics on her blog that God totally used to say, "This is you. This is you right now. Do you not get it? Have the clues in the past three days not been enough for you? Apparently I have to spell it out...so here you go." (Ironically, since I get her blog posts emailed to me, it appeared in my email inbox. I think that's the closest I've gotten to an email from God!) Build strong Christian friendships....they're beyond valuable.

One last note. God doesn't always give us what we want to know when we want to know it. I was recently asking God something, and He pretty much said, "Hey. You don't need to know." I was kinda surprised, because when I don't need to know something just yet I usually just end up with silence. And silence can be okay. Because God doesn't always give us all the answers all the time....that's what makes Him God and us human.

And sometimes we know the answers, and we're just praying because we want God to give us different answers. That's not okay. If, deep down, you know what God wants you to do, then it's time to stop praying and get to work.

There you have it. The four ways I tend to hear God's voice. God is creative, of course, so be sure to keep your eyes open in other areas too--but if you're seeking God's direction earnestly, reading your Bible, obeying your parents, talking to mentors, going to church, keeping up with Christian friends, and praying constantly for His help--whether you get a message or just silence--He's gonna direct your paths, whether or not you're aware of it.

Thanks for reading! :) God bless!