A Message from God

 You know Family, many times we go through some serious life threatening, dark and emotionally challenging situations , and it is only then when we perk up and realize that if we had only listened to the Holy Spirit speaking to us, we would not have been in this position.

It’s unfortunate. But it’s only when we lose a job, lose a loved one to death, get a bad doctor’s report about our health, that we are forced to stop, look, listen and obey. 

The difficulty most times is that many people do not have that connection with the Holy Spirit, or they listen to the wrong voices.

But in truth and in fact, God always sends a Word. He always has a message. 

How does God speak to you? How does God speak to me? Your answer might be different to mine, but certainly there are general ways in which God speaks to His people. 

You have heard this before, no doubt, and you should have already experienced this. We know God communicates through prayer - you talking and listening, through scriptures - and this has to be more than surface reading, God communicates through inner feelings - not something tells you but a nudging of the Holy Spirit, and sometimes God speaks through signs or experiences in daily life. 

And it’s the latter that I want to touch on for today’s exhortation.        

Now, this idea of God speaking through signs and experiences is deeply personal. I am aware that there are many who credit themselves, spiritual advisors, counsellors, mentors etc for giving them great advice which they followed and got through certain challenging situations in life. Some even say ‘oh it’s a coincidence’.

 But for us as Christians, there can be no doubt in our minds that this all boils down to a matter of our faith in God.

Over the past few months, I have been visited by a dove. Or it could be more than one; I couldn’t say. But this dove first came on the ledge of my front door in November last year 2023, 3 months ago. Later on that same month, I captured a beautiful sight of some eggs left to hatch in a hole in some blocks on my roof, obviously laid by a momma bird, not sure whether it was a dove. 

But more recently, this month, I’ve been drawn to the cooing sound of a dove just in front of my porch, not once, but twice, that I saw. And that led me to reflecting.

Interestingly enough, a few months prior to these recent times, everywhere I went, I was seeing snakes. 

Even after a major spiritual journey in my life, I had a very close encounter with a snake. My bold reaction was to cast out the presence of anything negative or demonic in my pathway.  

And can I tell you? That put me in a much stronger position spiritually, enriching my walk with the Lord. Hallelujah. 

So it is comforting to me now, that there is the dove. Because in the Bible, a dove is a symbol of the Holy Spirit. And in my situation, I have no fear, because I know the Holy Spirit is with me.

We are familiar with various references in the Bible to signs and wonders. They are often associated with divine intervention, supernatural occurrences or the conveying of divine messages. 

In the Old Testament, the story of Noah’s Ark includes a dove sent to find dry land. Gen 8:8-12.

Then after the flood, we read in Genesis 9:13-17, where God said to Noah, ”and I will [compassionately] remember My covenant, which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and never again will the water become a flood to destroy all flesh…This [rainbow] is the sign of the covenant (solemn pledge, binding agreement) which I have established…”

Remember Moses and the burning bush in Exodus 3:2-4?

Further down in Exodus chapters 7-11, God used signs and wonders to demonstrate His power to Pharaoh and secure the release of the Israelites from slavery. 

And in Exodus 13:22, God led the Israelites through the wilderness during the day with a pillar of cloud, and at night with fire. 

Then there is the story of Gideon and the fleece in Judges chapter 6, which illustrates God confirming his guidance through specific experiences. 

Jesus Himself, while He walked the earth fully man, showed signs of His divinity — the beginning of signs where he turned water into wine (John 2:1-11). Then there was the healing of the sick, the leper for instance in Matthew 8:1-4, and the feeding thousands with a few loaves and fish (Mark 6:30-44).

The disciples, in Acts 2:1-12, experienced the Holy Spirit in the form of tongues of fire, and they began to speak in different languages.

Many of us have experienced signs and wonders even in these times. But we are encouraged to be so careful to ask the Lord for spiritual discernment.

Matthew 24:24, Amplified Version, Jesus speaking: ”For false Christs and false prophets will appear and they will provide great signs and wonders, so as to deceive, if possible, even the elect (God’s chosen ones).“

Therefore Family, we must be careful to be led only by the Holy Spirit.  

Have you had an experience where you are questioning whether this is a sign from God? Seek Him my brother, seek Him my sister.

I am confident that God has sent me a message through this dove.

The dove serving as a symbol of the divine presence, purity, and anointing of the Holy Spirit, brings reassurance and acceptance. Luke 3:22 reads: ”and the Holy Spirit descended on Him in bodily form like a dove, and a voice came from heaven, “You are My Son, My Beloved, in You I am well-pleased and delighted!”“

I accept my dove as a symbol for peace, inner tranquility, hope, purity, love, harmony, protection and new beginnings. And I do not take these sightings lightly at all. This is my message from God. 

I leave you with these very deep and personal to you questions: What is your message from God? What signs and wonders are you seeing in your life? Are you listening for the Voice of the Lord in your circumstances? What do your signs mean? Are you taking these signs for granted? 

Family, if we are seeing certain things manifesting in our lives that we know that if it had not been for the Lord, we would not have seen, had, or even dreamed of, we’ve got to know it’s our message from God. 

And when we get that message, we should embrace it and let our world know of the wonderful God we serve.

aub 29 January 2024

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