-by Angela Moreno

And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left. Isaiah 30:21

God speaks to each one of us every day.  Some of us recognize His voice instantly and some of us have no clue that God is talking to us.

I used to be the one who had no clue.  My husband would ask me “what has God said to you today?” and I had no answer. I wasn’t hearing Him.  It wasn’t that God wasn’t speaking to me. I just didn’t know how to listen for Him.  I had to learn how God was speaking to me.

I love books.  I will read just about anything you put in my hands.  God put a hunger for words and knowledge in my heart.  I can’t get enough of learning and reading. This is how God chooses to speak to me.

Every book God has encouraged me to read over the last year has been exactly what I needed at the time.  How do I know this is God?  Because only God knows our true heart and what we need to heal our brokenness.

Three books in particular stand out for me.  Let’s start with “Not a Fan” by Kyle Idleman.  This book is about being a true follower of Christ and not “just a fan” of Him.  Luke 9:23 says it best:  And he [Jesus] said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.”  At this time, I needed this kick in the behind. I wasn’t living for Jesus.  God already knew that I was “just a fan” and that I needed to make the choice to be a follower. God led me directly to this book hidden amongst thousands of other books.  I went into the bookstore with the mindset that God would give me the book I needed to read and He more than delivered.

Several months later, I was struggling with a different part of my life.  I had a lot of past pain from rejection and hurt. God led me to the book “Uninvited” by Lysa TerKeurst.  Have you ever picked up a book written by a total stranger that was totally your life?  Parts of this book was my story. Lysa knew exactly how I felt and had strong words of encouragement throughout her book. God has an amazing plan for my life and He needed me to get past the rejection and pain I was feeling so I could take part in the plan He has laid out for me.  This was the book He chose for me.

While I was reading “Uninvited,” I kept getting this gentle nudge to read another book. A couple of weeks later I finally picked up “Wait and See” by Wendy Pope. After I read the first chapter, I knew exactly why God wanted me to read this book.  God is teaching me how He uses seasons of waiting to prepare us for what He has in store. I’ve been waiting for something very special for more than 20 years.  I’m learning why my wait is important and how God is using this time to prepare me for the promises He has in store for me.  (He’s probably going to point me to a book on being patient next because I’m still waiting and I’m not waiting very patiently, but that’s another lesson.)

If you think God doesn’t talk to you, I challenge you to dig a little deeper. At first, I didn’t see that He was talking to me through a gift that He had given me.  God speaks to me in many ways.  I’m just more tuned into His voice now than I was before.

There is a gift that God has given to you.  He will use that gift to speak to you.

Are you trusting fully in God and listening for Him?  God speaks to all of us every day.  We just have to be quiet, listen, and learn to recognize God’s voice.