St. John Studies

Risk: the possibility that something bad or unpleasant (such as an injury or a loss) will happen; someone or something that may cause something bad or unpleasant to happen;  a person or thing that someone judges to be a good or bad choice.*

The idea of risk sounds ominous doesn’t it?

What happens to risk when you live a life where you get your guidance from God? Is risk ever even relevant?  Does God’s guidance preclude the notion that you even have to take a risk?

Dr. Willard says that risk is just a part of life and certainly we need to be able to take risks. In fact, he says we should take risks.

I have friends who are scared to death to risk anything. I know a woman who is so conservative that she lives in horror of doing something that is new or inventive, much less risk-taking.  She fears the idea that something unpleasant may happen.  I would describe her life as very inhibited, at times she seems to be scared of living.

What does one give up by not risking?

Growth.

I hate to say it, but when we have a chance to take a risk, we should calculate the risk and if it is not stupid, then God will be there to help us. Many think He will guarantee our success, but He may not.  If the chance that we have taken is not reasonable or intelligent, we may experience failure.  But there is a truth here that we need to heed; there is learning in the process of failure and we have a God who wants us to learn.

Dr. Willard quotes A.T. Pierson who says “One great law for all who would be truly led by God’s pillar of cloud and fire, is to take no step at the bidding of self-will or without the clear moving of a heavenly guide….there is never any risk provided we are only lead by God” [italics mine].  Dr. Willard disagrees with this very conservative outlook on life.  “The immaturity of many Christians today is due to their adopting the attitude toward risk expressed in this statement, as the whole truth about hearing from God.”

Dallas Willard’s book Hearing God is all about hearing the voice of God in our lives and the “no risk” attitude is just man’s way of using God to make life easier.  We want a secure life.  We want a life without surprises.  We want a life without risk.

What happens when we risk and the reward is not worth the risk?   We blame ourselves.  We blame others.  Yes, some even blame God.

We have failed and we don’t see the learning that has occurred. We just see the failure.

On a personal note, I can relate to this. I have taken chances and failed.  I know it hurts to fail.  I was talking to a pastor about the “long-term” look at life the other night.  She said that it is hard to be happy when you are right in the middle of a mess, but if you can just hold on to your faith, you can see God at work in the process of risk and even the resulting failure.  It may be years later, but He is there.  God wants us to grow and after learning from the failure, that’s exactly what can happen.

Yes, it hurts to be “in the mess,” but over a period of time, the mess may have been just what you needed. Also, the resultant growth is what you needed.

Dr. Willard states “we need not seek risk, but we will never be without it, at least in this world. Nor should we try to be.”

Will hearing from God preclude the notion of risk?

No.

In Dr. Willard’s words “only risk produces character.” [Willard, 210].

I am thinking that this is a good thing.

Take a risk; God will be there, whatever happens.

*Merriam-Webster Dictionary

When I am not getting guidance from God, what do I do? What do I have that will keep me going?

Well Dr. Willard says you get something “greater than a word from God.”

What does he mean?

What could be greater than a word of guidance from God?

Well folks, what you get when you become a solid believer is the fact that you don’t need to have God guide your every move.   God has trained you under His hand.

So many people in Christian circles talk about the elusive idea of Christian maturity and I know I have written about it numerous times in 2015. But what is it?  Is it something that comes about as you live a certain number of years on this earth?

Of course your age has nothing to do with it.

Is it something that you can force yourself to have?

No, I don’t think so. You can’t make it happen.  It can happen over a lifetime of dedication to God but it is brought about by the response that you have to your circumstances.   Let me be specific with some examples.

You have a health problem and the news is not good. You have financial hardship…you lose your job and you can’t pay all your bills.  You have a death in your family or your good friend dies.

The big question is, how do you respond?

Do you crumble? Do you go into a panic?  Do you do “out of character” things?

No, no and no…

You have been trained under the hand of God and instead of crumbling, going into a panic or doing “out of character” things, you stand firm.

You have what God has given you on a regular basis to sustain you in times of trouble.

You have faith, hope and love. If you know your Bible, these three words sound familiar.  Of course they come from 1 Corinthians 13.  In this chapter of the Bible, Paul talks about faith, hope and love being the greatest gifts that the Lord has given us.

At times when we need a word from God [and many of those times are times of trouble], faith will sustain us. Faith is used so much that it has a vague meaning but it means trusting God, having assurance that God is with us, having confidence in the Lord.  Hebrews 11:1 says “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”  You can have more faith by regular prayer and the study of God’s word.  You can exercise your faith by obeying God and doing service for others.

Hope is the second gift of God that is there to sustain us.

I have so many people in my family who are going through hard times and many of them have lost hope. They are being buffeted by poor health, poor working conditions and relationship problems.  They have given up.

But the Christian who has hope anticipates that something good is going to happen to help their situation soon. They have hope that things are going to turn around.  They see a brighter future ahead.

Anticipation of a brighter future will keep you holding on when times are tough. That can lead to a stable response in times of trouble.  Stability is a definite sign that a person is a true believer; they can project positivity in the face of problems.  They can look forward to the future when the present is dark.

Love is the the last gift that will sustain us when we need guidance or we need a word from God. If God is not fulfilling our needs, love allows us to concentrate on others.  Turning our thoughts to others takes our minds off of our needs and that can be so theraputic.

Of course Paul says the “greatest of these is love.” The act of meeting the needs of others in a time of personal trial is a powerful message that is not lost on others.

When you are not getting guidance from God, what do you do? What do you have that will keep you going?

You have a lot to keep you going if you have spiritual maturity. If you don’t have that, you don’t have enough.

In Galatians 5:13, it says “The one who sent Me is with Me.” You know you are not alone just because you are not getting a word, getting guidance, getting answers to your prayers.

A spiritually mature person who has been trained under the hand of God has faith, hope and love.

And they know that those three are enough.

We know that ultimately God has control of all, but we have to deal with people all the time. And with people, we have a terrific lack of control from time to time. This leads to final question # 5:

When God gives me a message and I know what to do, can people get in the way of me taking action to do God’s work?

The answer:

Yes They Can.

This is a fascinating twist on the theme that Dr. Willard has been working on in his whole book. For the most part, we have discussed his ideas with the implication that God is totally in control.

He is.

But people in our lives can really mess us up.

Dr. Willard refers to this as the fact that we are all involved in a “Cosmic Conflict.”

We may indeed feel that we know what to do. Specific God communication has come our way.  But we live in a world of people that may not be “on the same page” as we are.  Romans 12:2 says “Do not be conformed to the pattern of this world.”

What does that mean?

It basically means that we need to do what is right as followers of God; do not do what is popular.

We are surrounded by people who will bring darkness into our lives and these people can cause trouble that makes us question whether we are doing the right thing, but Dr. Willard cites John Wesley as he reminds us “Best of all, God is with us!”

Wesley and Willard have confidence that even in the dark times God does not desert us, [Romans 8:28]  “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.” We must hold on to our faith as people come against us and circumstances get in the way of our plans, but God will prevail.

Dr. Willard even gets more complex in his explanation when he speaks of God’s role in the person who is working against you doing His will. “[In] Others [who] may be involved, …they may not know or may not do the will of God.  And God may not override them.”

Could God override them?

Of course He could.

Dr. Willard says that our world is a crucible of soul making. In case you are not familiar with that word, a crucible is a ceramic or metal container in which metals or other substances may be melted or subjected to very high temperatures.  When you hear that a Christian is in a crucible, this means he or she is undergoing a severe test or trial.

Maybe, just maybe God is wanting to see how we can overcome the people who stand in our way.  Job passed his test; can you?

You know the difficulty you face when you go against convention. People don’t want you to try something new.  They don’t want you making a stand.  They distrust your new direction.

They want you to stay the same way you have always been.

Yes, the will of God can sometimes be unfulfilled due to some of the people around us in our lives. They have choices to make as we do and if they are not doing God’s will, they may indeed be serious stumbling blocks.

We are too quick to blame our failing on ourselves…our lack of courage, our lack of faith, our lack of skills.

But maybe we need to look at the people around us.

People in your life can support you and encourage you. But we all know that there are people who are very discouraging.  We all know that there are people who are very negative.  We all know people who don’t care about anyone but themselves.

There is a phrase that Pastor Joel Osteen uses at the beginning of his church services.

The phrase goes like this: “as children of God, we are overcomers and more than conquerors and God intends for each of us to experience the abundant life He has in store for us.”

This is a good phrase to have in mind when people in your world begin to attack you when you are just trying to do what God has told you.

When people get in the way, God knows that this is a real problem. Always remember, God will show you the way…

The way of the overcomer…

The way of the conqueror…

The way of the believer who is enjoying God’s abundant life.

Ephesians 6

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.  For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”

Give us, O God
Give us, O God, the vision which can see your love in the world in spite of human failure.
Give us the faith to trust your goodness in spite of our ignorance and weakness.
Give us the knowledge that we may continue to pray with understanding hearts.
And show us what each one of us can do to set forward the coming of the day of universal peace.

Amen.

I found this Christmas prayer and it has no author.  As I read it, I thought it may be reflective of Dr. Willard.  It is not his prayer, but in this Christmas season, my post today reflects the need that we all have to pray.

My love to all St. John Studies Readers.

DC

I have a son who wants a perfect job. He is gainfully employed and has been since graduating college but after a year or so, he feels the need to move on to other employment.

For the purposes of illustration, let’s say he is a praying Christian.

He has been talking to God about the direction of his life. He has prayed for perfect employment.

He keeps praying and praying. The job has not presented itself.

What is wrong?

Like my son, do you pray for specific things in your life?

A new direction for employment? A person who will come into your life and be your partner?  A decision about where to go to school?

Some people ask specific questions and they want specific answers.

Final Question Number 4 is: If God does not give you a specific answer about a specific question does that mean that you are not living in God’s perfect will?

There is more to this question than meets the eye.

What is this perfect will? Romans 12:2 gives us a scriptural reference:  “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is–his good, pleasing and perfect will.”

In essence, if we turn our backs to worldly concerns and allow God to enter our lives, we will be transformed through the “renewing” of our minds. Then we will be able to experience God’s perfect will.

There are many references to God’s will in the Bible but Dr. Willard refers to perfect will, a level of knowledge of God that I would assume all serious Christians would want to attain.

But back to the question; if God does not give you a specific answer about a specific question does that mean that you are not living in God’s perfect will?

Dr. Willard says “most assuredly it does not” [Willard, 206].

He states that we should not blame a lack of a word from God on our “wrongness.” This idea is a human idea.  So many of us see life as black and white, right and wrong, when it is not.  God has a multi-faceted, complex approach to our world and His ways are not our ways.  Dr. Willard says God can and will give specific directions to those He wants to give them to, but perhaps He does not desire to give them.  Maybe it is best that He not be specific.

Have you ever considered the fact that our choosing without God’s direction is the “perfect” scenario for a Father who wants us to learn how to choose without His intervention? “It is perhaps more perfect precisely because He saw no need for precise dictation” [Willard, 206-07].

Also, several different courses of action occur in every circumstance. Several different choices could be pleasing to God.  If you are in God’s general will, you will pick one that is pleasing to God and you won’t need His directives.

As we have seen throughout this book, we just want the easy answer. We want the confirmation.  We want to see far down the road we are getting ready to take, even though we have to walk in faith.

We want to know!

Because we are insecure in our faith.

“The sincere seeker should assume that this [a number of alternatives] is so and should move forward with faith in God if no specific word comes on the matter concerned after a reasonable period of time” [Willard, 207].

How can we feel assured that we can do this?

It happens if you are a mature Christian.

A mature Christian gets on with the work of God. Dr. Willard references William Carey who said [a mature Christian] “attempts great things for God and expects great things from God.”

Maturity does not require assurance.

The mature Christian has it already.

Mature Christians are not obsessed with doing the right thing. They know what is right.

They know because they are used to being immersed in the flow of God’s life; they experience the good-hearted companionship of the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit on a daily basis.

Maybe you are not there yet. You still need specific answers.  You need assurance.  Don’t give up.  God wants you to experience the flow of a life lived with Him at the center.

Maybe you can have it…

Maybe it can start with your next decision.

What message is God not sending you about a particular problem that you are facing?

Does He think you are disobedient?

Does He think you are not attuned to His will?

Are you displeasing to God?

Is God manipulating you?

Dr. Willard says no to all of this. He discounts all our worries in the words “God does not play little games of hide and seek with us… He is not frivolous or coy; He will not tease or torture us…there is no mysterious catch to receiving His word for us, no riddle to solve, no incantation to get just right….We must make a point of not thinking of Him in terms of human beings…who may have enjoyed tricking us.”

What is going on?

An answer is that it may be God’s will that we decide instead of having God give us a word and that word decides for us.

Does this mean that God does not care about us and our concerns? No, it merely means that He wants to see how we will choose to carry out our lives.  In essence, God says “My will for you is that you decide on your own.”

What is happening is the construction of a person’s character in God’s kingdom. The following quote from John Wood Oman is tough to understand until you parse it.  “We can only be absolutely dependent upon God as we are absolutely independent in our own souls.”  To have a soul that is dependent  totally on God is to have a life that is not a life of choices.  God does all the choosing for you.  “A saved soul, in other words, is a soul true to itself because, with its mind on God’s will of love and not on itself, it stands in God’s world unbribable and undismayed.”   A person who is saved and is making choices is honestly doing God’s work because that person wants to.  The choices are clear; the actions are real; God has not intervened but His work is being done anyway.

The last phrase is the most telling: [the person’s soul is] “having freedom as it has piety and piety as it is free.” In other words, the believer has total freedom due to excellent choices.

Galatians 2:20 is illustrated in this process…”I live! Yet not I, but Christ lives in me.”

Dr. Willard says this character building shows the fullest expression of an individual’s human personality.

I like the way Dr. Willard elaborates on our choosing. It is like a child who is turned loose to do what he or she wants.  The choices the child makes reveals the person that the child is going to be.

To be a mature Christian is to make excellent choices.

So many people are scared to death to choose anything. They are obsessed with being right all the time.  If they are right, they are safe.  They wait upon the word from God as their deciding word.  Maybe this person is thinking God is a tyrant who will mete down severe punishment for bad choices.  Maybe this person is afraid to make choices because they don’t want to be responsible for their actions.

Dr. Willard says this approach to decision-making is not respectful to God; the hesitant decider is harboring a low opinion of God.

I simply love the way Dr. Willard cites Pastor Bud Robinson’s story about the widow’s suits. Her husband died and she called up Pastor Bud.  She reported to him that “God told me that I should give my husband’s suits to you.”  Then she said that she would like for the pastor to come over and try on the suits.  His very intelligent reply was that will not be necessary: “If God told you to give them to me, they’ll fit.”

What is the point?

God has a plan and we need to accept it. If God intends us to be decision-makers and have growth through the decision making process, that’s good enough.

Make the decision.

Don’t try to hedge your bets by waiting for God.

Don’t play waiting games because you are afraid to make a mistake.

Don’t avoid responsibility by trying to shove that off on God.

Believe in a competent God.

Come on folks. Maybe we don’t know what we are doing but…

He does.

“Thy will be done.”

If you have ever gone to church, you know that little sentence is in the Lord’s prayer.

The problem most of us have is that we say the Lord’s prayer so many times that the little sentence becomes rote.  The words spill out thoughtlessly and we don’t take the time to consider what they mean.

I think they mean that God’s will is going to be done, no matter what. He is in control.

“Thy will be done” is our acknowledgment that He is always the Master and we are always the humble requestors.

In yesterday’s post I commented on Dr. Willard’s idea that there are practical means to get a message from God, but now Dr. Willard says practical means should not make us think we can engage in God abuse.

God cannot be commanded to speak to us and hearing from God is not just the utilization of a set of gimmicks.

He uses King Saul as an example and the more you study the life of Saul, you can see he is a perfect illustration of this concept. Saul had specific instructions from God about what he was supposed to do; he was supposed to wait for Samuel the priest before he offered up burnt offerings to God.  However he was in the midst of a campaign against the Philistines and he had a sense of urgency.  He wanted God’s blessings now.  He forced everything; he wanted his blessing when he wanted his blessing.

Samuel knew Saul did wrong and announced he would lose his kingdom. What did Saul do?  He disobeyed again.  He was told to destroy Amalek and not leave a remnant and he did not do what he was told.

Later, Saul was in a terrible condition. The Philistines were on the verge of destroying his army and killing him and he did not know what to do.  Samuel the prophet was dead at this time.  He summoned a witch to contact the spirit of Samuel.

Dr. Willard says this is “sadly typical… of the human view of God and His guidance.” [Willard, 202].

We get it so wrong; God controls us. We don’t control Him.

If things go right, it is God’s will that they go right.

If things go wrong, it is God’s will they they have gone that way.

Our problem is, we want things going our way, all the time.

Saul did not get the message that he wanted. The spirit of Samuel said he would be dead tomorrow and his army would be defeated.  This was Samuel’s spirit speaking to Saul.  God would have nothing to do with Saul.

Dr. Willard is so right. “We treat [God] like a celestial  asperin that will cure headaches brought on by the steady, willful tendency of our lives away from and even against Him.  We treat him as a cosmic butler who is there to clean up our messes.”

Yes, there may be practical things we can do to get a word from God but the human tendency is to take practical advice and turn it into a gimmick to get our way.

That’s sad but it is so human.

God refused to be used by Saul any longer.

Saul forgot key facts.

God is always in control. God commands; we don’t.

Remember that short sentence?

“Thy will be done.”

We don’t need to say it without thinking about it.

It’s a fact. Not Saul’s fact.

It is our fact.

Here we go; the first of the final questions at the end of Hearing God.

What is practical advice for a person to hear the voice of God or what can a person do to have a chance to hear Him?

Dr. Willard starts his answer to this question by quoting James Dobson. Dobson is very practical.  He says this:

“I get down on my knees and say, ‘Lord, I need to know what you want me to do, and I am listening. Please speak to me through my friends, books, magazines I pick up and read and through circumstances.’”

Is that direct enough for you?

It is not complex but it shows commitment.   Let’s break it down.

You are asking God what He wants you to do. You are not telling God what you want Him to do.  Dobson knows that God can use many means of communication to get His message across.  Lastly, we need to be ready to receive the message because we have asked God to speak to us through circumstances.

Have you ever told someone you were ready to listen and then you did not listen? Not good to do to God.  Not if you want God to reveal His will for you.

Regularity of time with God is a good idea too. A person who asks God for Him to reveal His will every three or four months is not going to get many messages.   Daily time for listening to God is best.   Frederick B. Meyer says “Be still each day for a short time, sitting before God in meditation, and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you the truth of Christ’s indwelling.”

Dr. Willard reveals his practical approach to God’s voice. After spending daily time with God asking for a word, he does something unrelated to his prayer time; working in the garden, doing errands, housework.   This takes his mind off of the need for a word and it puts him into a confident mode of thought.  Instead of worrying about not receiving a word, he carries on, with the idea that God will contact him if a message is forthcoming.  God commands us; we don’t command God.

“If nothing emerges, I am not alarmed. I set myself to hold the matter before God as I go about my business and then confidently go on with my life” [Willard, 200]

It is important to note that Dr. Willard does not shift into a mode of ignoring God. He still listens for God’s Word or voice.  He just figures that God will speak to him when He wants to.  It is funny to hear him admit that God “slips up on me” from time to time.  When he least expects it, God will share an idea.

I have to admit that some concerns that we take to God are more serious than others. A person who is trapped in a burning car needs a way out.  A mother who is losing her son to a disease is in a dire circumstance.  A man who is in a failing marriage and is being tempted by a very available woman [not the wife] is in a tense situation.

Dr. Willard says God will always speak to the “mature disciple” and give direction if “serious harm would befall people” if He did not speak.

A key here is the word mature. Mature Christians have a working relationship with God.  They have a regular time to spend with the Lord.  They put themselves before God and ask Him to use them to do His work.  It is not always “give me this or give me that.”  Too often, immature Christians approach God with a “what have you done for me lately” attitude.  Mature Christians give to the Lord, their time, talent and finances.  They are before God constantly and they have ready open ears to listen for the Lord’s directives.

Dr. Willard says it best in his words “It is much more important to cultivate the quiet inward space of a constant listening than to always be approaching God for a specific direction.”

So what do we get from this first answer to the first question?

Go before the Lord and ask Him for direction.   Be open-minded and let God use whatever means He wants to deliver His message.  Be patient and know He does not have to answer your prayer or give you a word until He wants to.  Be persistent in listening to the Lord, even though it may take awhile.

Wear the knees out as you go before the Lord at a regular time every day.

Dr. Willards says copy Dr. Dobson’s prayer down and read it. That’s really practical.  Here is another tip.

Get knee pads.

You will need them.

It may have hurt your feelings to read the quote. You know the one that expresses the cold hard reality.  The one in the previous post.

“Very few humans really do concretely desire to hear what God has to say to them.”

In the context of the previous post, I tried to express the idea that we don’t listen well to God.   We stop listening if the message interferes with our lives and if we do listen, we distort the message to fit our life desires.   Do you think God wants to waste time with someone who does that?

I don’t know.

I wouldn’t. Would you?

But I don’t know the mind of God.

I know God speaks to sinners. Jesus spent his life listening to sinners and Jesus spoke to sinners.  Matthew 11:15 “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” This verse is not addressed to believers; it is addressed to all.

But let’s get to the topic I pose in the title of this blog entry.

Who does not hear God’s voice?

The most common time that someone wants a word from God is in times of crisis.  During wartime, this is often referred to as a “foxhole prayer.”  For any who are not familiar with that term it means that when the bombs are bursting and one’s life is in immanent danger, many soldiers pray for deliverance from harm’s way.  That is all they have.   A desperate plea for God to let them live.

Talk about a crisis.

Believe it or not, Dr. Willard says that when we are “backed into a corner” that’s when we pray for a word from God.   We are ready to listen.  When we are not in trouble or when we are not faced with a tough decision, we don’t want to listen to God.

But He is speaking.

Yes, when you are looking for the perfect Christmas card and you have gone to three places and then you see it as you are leaving the card section of your third store, He is speaking. When you feel the need to call a sick friend and you do and you can tell in their voice that you have touched them, you have done His work and He has worked through you.  He has spoken and you have done His bidding.

These are the uneventful times of life.

But believers who want to hear from God, listen to Him and want to hear Him all the time.   They are not just foxhole prayer people.

Dr. Willard says “Those who want a word from God when they are in trouble cannot find it. Or at least they have no assurance that they have found it…they do not first and foremost …want to hear God speaking in their lives in general.”

Dr. Willard goes further in excluding people from God’s Word. He feels that people who have blatant disregard of God’s directives may have little chance to hear from God.  He points to 1 Thessalonians 4:3 on sexual immorality as an example.  People ignore that instruction with impunity.  Certainly the person who does not care to pray in the midst of an uneventful life is ignoring 1 Thessalonians 5:18.  “It is not wise to disregard these plain directives and then expect to hear a message from God when we want it.”

Here is the “bottom line” for people who receive words from God. These people desire God’s Word because they know God has our best interest in His heart.

These people want to receive daily help to be more “Christlike”. They seek transformation.  They know that getting from where they are to where they want to be will not be possible without God’s guidance. God guides in the little things and in the big things.   God is there in the happy times and He is there in the unhappy times.

The person who does not hear from God is the person who does not have ready ears. To be technical [since I majored in communication] the person who hears from God is the one who is trying to receive the message from God 24/7 and is willing to accept it as it is, without selective listening or distortion.

If you have a heart for The Lord, He will speak.

Dr. Willard cites G. Campbell Morgan: “wherever there are hearts waiting for the Voice of God, that Voice is to be heard.”

Is your heart ready?

One of the things we know about human communication is the fact that it does not occur in a vacuum.

When a person speaks to another person, “history” with the other person is involved.

Dr. Willard acknowledges that in the words “careful study of personal relationships shows that recognition of a certain voice is often the cue for someone to stop listening or even to distort the message in particular ways that are relevant to the specific nature of the relationship  between the people involved.”

Let’s stop for a minute and break this down.

We can all relate I think.

I have been doing better since I have retired from full-time employment but there was a time in my life when my wife Susan would ask me to do something around the house. There was a certain tone to her voice as she made her request.  Over the years I became an expert on detecting that tone.  Let’s say, I often did not have the best attitude toward her requests and when I heard that tone, I was not happy to get that message.  Yes, I would stop listening or I would distort her message instead of taking it at face value and prepare to get the requested work done. [Oh the things I do for this blog; many know that Susan is my editor].

Let’s give credit where credit is due; my wife never has requested extremely difficult things from me. She has never given me a jobs list requiring days of work or complex jobs that make me think long and hard about how to do the work.  In short, she did not deserve my poor responses.

But she got them anyhow.   The bottom line, her message was not the message I wanted to hear.

Dr. Willard says this relates to Divine-human communication. In other words, some people may hear from God and they are in rebellion against God’s Word [they don’t listen or they distort the message].

Why would this be?

Maybe it is like a message from my wife. I know what is coming when I hear the vocal tone.  I know it will have a negative impact on my plans for the day; doing her work is not “on my list.”

I engage in covert rebellion against my wife.

You see, communication is an active process whereby the speaker forms an idea using words and submits that idea to the listener. Certain words are selected because they fit the intention of the speaker and they may be selected because there is a history with the listener.  Some words work better than others.  If you have a joking relationship with a listener, you will use less serious language.  If you have a knowledge of their intellect and you know they are not that smart, ideas may be expressed in simple vocabulary.  If you have a long relationship with the person, private words and expressions can be used because those private terms mean something to you and the listener.

Listeners hear those words and they may “select or omit from, as well as reshape, the message intended by the speaker….If we do not want to be converted from our chosen and habitual ways, if we really want to run our own lives without any interference from God, our very special perceptual mechanisms will filter out His voice or twist it to our own purposes” [Willard, 197].

God is ignored because what He is asking of us is inconvenient. We would rather not have to hear what He has to say.

If His message does not fit our plan for our lives, we will have to alter our lives to fit His request. If the Divine message requires some commitment on our part, that is too much for many people.  Maybe the message will cause us to alter our strong habits and we can’t give them up.

Dr. Willard just makes a hard judgement against us all: “The doleful reality is that very few human beings do concretely desire to hear what God has to say to them.”

What happens when God makes His requests and we turn Him down? What happens when God tells us what to do and we don’t listen?  What happens when God intends for us to alter our lives and we stay the same?

What will happen is God may begin to speak to us less.

Why does He do this?

Well, He knows our history.