Christian Counselor Directory Blog

God is still speaking to His people.

His communication with us is not simply a thing of the past, a relic of a bygone era.

In fact, God speaks to us all the time.

I work to help people discover more of His presence and power in their lives. That includes learning to hear God speak and discerning how to respond to His leading.

In my time working with people, I have found 3 very common beliefs that block people from hearing what God is speaking to them. I want to share these common misconceptions so that together we can break through the barriers they bring.

The 3 Beliefs That Block Us From Hearing God:

1. The belief that God is not speaking.

Many Christians believe that God only spoke prior to the writing of Scripture. Many others, who believe that God occasionally still speaks assume that they are not spiritual enough to hear Him or that He does not have anything to say to them.

Yet, I find that God is regularly speaking. In fact, sometimes He is quite chatty and He has plenty to say to anyone who wants to take the time to actually listen.

Scripture gives us no indication that God has stopped speaking to His people. In fact, it says the opposite. When Paul said to the Corinthians to eagerly pursue the gift of prophecy he was telling them that it is indeed possible to receive revelation from God that they could each share with the community (1 Corinthians 14:1). In other words, Paul told the entire Corinthian church—who were not known for their stellar spiritual maturity—that each of them could hear from God.

Throughout the history of the Church there are countless stories of men and women of faith that have had incredible encounters with God. Such accounts are given to us to show what is possible.

The same is true for the cases we find in Scripture. Examples of God interacting with His people in the Bible illustrate how ordinary people can have extraordinary experiences with the divine. The stories in Scripture are meant to instruct on what is possible when we walk with God.

2. The assumption that God speaks audibly from outside us

Truthfully, God 'speaks' in a variety of ways, but very seldom audibly. Most of what He communicates to us privately comes from the still small voice within. Since His spirit now resides in us, His voice will almost always come to us from within (as opposed to without). Yet, we often ignore His voice.

If we dismiss our own internal dialogue, we will dismiss the chief way God has designated to commune with us. His voice is often softer, slower and gentler than the world around us. Life in modern society is fast-paced, invasive and loud. So, we have to intentionally cultivate an inner quiet that allows us to be present to ourselves and aware of God’s Holy Spirit speaking.

God honors our freedom to choose, so He rarely speaks loud enough to command us to do something. He seems to reserve that kind of interaction only for the times we are headed for serious trouble.

Instead, His leadings tend to be more gentle prompts, reminders, a series of “coincidences”, feelings and even physical sensations. Sometimes He will bring a verse from Scripture to mind or give us a certain word or phrase. Often, He will give us a certain gut feeling that we can use to discern the situation around us.

Many people have much more mystical and charismatic encounters. But, even if you have not experienced that kind of thing, you can be sure that God has already been speaking to you in a variety of ways.

3. The lie that God is unkind.

Most Christians would profess that God is a loving God. Yet, when it comes down to it, they have failed to really internalize that truth.

Because of that, many people carry the assumption that God is really displeased with them and their choices. They feel that He is disappointed with our sinfulness and really wishes that we would get it together.

Truthfully, God is not as focused (obsessed really) with sin as we are. He has already made provision for it to be paid for upon the cross.

He already knows who and what we are. And, He has chosen to redeem us and set up shop within us anyway. He is under no illusions as to what we have done or what we are capable of. Despite our frailty, He is still pleased with us.

Scripture says that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ. Therefore, any and all words, thoughts or ideas that make us feel bad, shamed or dirty DO NOT come from Him.

In fact, His voice tends to be the exact opposite. He is generally encouraging, uplifting and empowering. He is the warmest, friendliest and most fun Being that has ever or will ever exist! Even when He does convict us of sin He does so in such a way that shows us that we are capable of so much more.

This is relevant because I regularly find that people dismiss communication from God because it sounds too affirming, too encouraging, too friendly, too imaginative, too hopeful and too playful. His words are much more full of life than they are accustomed to. Their own negative self-talk and condemning attitudes tend to convince them that God must share in their abasing self-perceptions and therefore the 'nice' words they hear from Him must be a product of their own wishful thinking.

Now, not every pleasant thought that passes through our heads comes from God. However, it would not hurt any of us to believe that God is more kind and encouraging than anyone we have ever known.

Conclusion

Truly, we all need to examine our thought-life and take our thoughts captive to the love of Christ. Our minds need to be renewed to the truth of His goodness and acceptance of us.

This is truly what it means to have a relationship with Christ—to recognize that we are indeed one of His sheep that hear His voice and to live in constant conversation with Him.

So, here are 3 Great Truths:

1. God is still speaking to us.

2. He speaks in ways that we are meant to understand.

3. His messages to us are encouraging and full of life. When we live from these truths, we will experience a new freedom and exuberance in life.

Help to Hear His Voice:

I have put together some great resources to help you begin to hear God’s voice and to grow in your relational conversations with Him. The AGAPE prayer (https://www.VectorMinistries/resources) is a good place to begin and Spiritual Reading is a great tool for connecting to God’s communication through Scripture.

Be sure to check out the resources page and let me know how they are working out for you.

Blessings!
Patrick

God likes you.

No, really. He actually really likes... you.

Take a moment and let the words sink in: God likes you. He really does.

Most Christians are accustomed to saying that “God loves us.” It seems that John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life,” is the most widely recognized verse of them all. We all seem to know it.

Yet, it seems that very few believers actually internalize the truth of it to the point they understand that God not only loves them, but He actually likes them too!

Though many of us know John 3:16, I find that not many of us are familiar with the next verse: “God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him (John 3:17).” God is pleased with everything that He has made—including each one of us. When He made the earth and everything in it, He saw all of creation as being “good” (Genesis 1:1-24). God did not give up on creation, including each one of us, after the fall.

Often people find it hard to believe that God likes them.

Many of us feel embarrassed or even ashamed in His presence. Often we import experiences with our earthly fathers onto God and assume that our Heavenly Father behaves the same way. It may be difficult to believe that God actually likes us, but it is a journey that each one of our hearts needs to take.

The fact is that God likes each one of us so much that He aches to be with us.

Scripture says that Jesus endured the suffering of the cross for the joy set before him (Hebrews 12:2). The joy he was after was the reconciliation and reunion of his people—his friends. Jesus was clear, he considers us his friends (John 15:5). And, so was Father God; He calls us co-heirs with Christ (Romans 8:17), which means that we are brothers and sisters to Jesus. He is our big brother, the firstborn of the redeemed children of God (Romans 8:29).

Christ did not suffer because he felt obliged to put up with us for all eternity. No! He suffered because he could not stand to live forever without us. He died to be with us.

The whole work of God is the reclamation of His creation, including the restoration of His people.

Everything He does is because He wants to be near us. This is what it means that He is a jealous God; He wants a relationship with us. Have you ever pondered over this? God so desires a relationship with us that He burns with jealousy when we devote ourselves to other idols. He so desires our affection that His heart is wounded without it. Christ wanted to be a reconciled family with us that he was willing to suffer and die in order to achieve it.

Why? Well, it seems pretty easy to say that it is because God loves us. But, really, does that explain it? The word love is so convoluted in our culture that sometimes it loses its meaning. I certainly think that in the church it is easy to lose sight of what God’s love for us really means.

Truly, what it means is that God likes us: He likes who we are, He enjoys spending time with us, He likes talking with us, He values our input and listens to our prayers, He plans good out ahead of time: good gifts to give us, and He takes a vested interest in the course of our lives including every detail.

He has stared adoringly at our faces so many times that He has counted the hairs on our head. He knows our every wrinkle, every blemish, every sin and He still adores us anyway. Nothing we have every done will ever change how He feels about us (Romans 8:31).

When we really start to get the fact that God likes us—not just loves us, but actually likes us—our whole world begins to change. For me, it has meant a greater degree of security in who I am, and consequently, more courage to step out into new adventures. It has given me the assurance that no matter what happens in life, and even if I should fail utterly, that God will still be my friend and be proud of me for trying.

Know this: should you fall flat on your face, God will still smile every time He sees you.

I know that this wasn’t something I grew up hearing in Sunday school, but the Bible is clear that God “will take delight in you with gladness. With His love, He will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs (Zephaniah 3:17).” God actually makes us songs to sing over us because He delights in us so much.

Can you picture it? God dancing and singing in Heaven because He so adores His people?

God likes you. Think about it today. Ponder it. And, above all… dare to believe it. It will change your life. It certainly has changed mine.

I think every one of my clients has asked it in one way or another. Maybe every Christian has asked it. It certainly is a common question.

And, let’s be honest, it’s a good question to ask.

It’s a good question to ask even if our motives are mixed. Sometimes we ask God’s will because we genuinely want to know. Sometimes we ask because we aren’t 100% sure we want to follow His will. And, sometimes we ask God’s will because we really want to try to hedge our bets and mitigate the risk that is inherent in making any choice in life.

Every journey comes with risk. Sometimes we are so scared of making the wrong choice that we want a guarantee that it will all work out. So, we end up seeking God’s will not so much out of a desire to do it His way, but more from a place of being afraid to get it wrong.

But, regardless of our motives—however mixed they may or may not be—I think God genuinely wants to communicate with us. He wants us to seek His will. And, He wants to make His will known!

In most cases, God communicates to us in ways that we are meant to understand.

So, what does it look like to “hear” Him speak to us about our lives? How do we know that we are on the right path, making the right choices?

Generally, the process goes something like this: Inspiration, Affirmation, Confirmation, Formation, Generation, and Opposition.

Let’s take a look at the process in a little more depth:

1. Inspiration—God inspires you with a thought, idea or feeling. You get an insight or urge to do something. Often, we think that these thoughts are our own and don’t realize they come from God. Sometimes we dismiss them outright as being ludicrous or impractical.

Example: One day, seemingly out of the blue, you get the thought that you should move to Denver.

2. Affirmation—As you begin to think about the possibilities of this Inspiration someone or something gives you encouragement to keep considering it as possible. As you step into the idea, you get more reasons to hope that you are on the right path.

Example: You run your crazy idea to start a business by your best friend and surprisingly she tells you to go for it!

3. Confirmation—As you step forward, circumstances come together to help make a way. Life opens up possibilities and opportunities. You knock on the door and it opens a little bit. It’s like when God did the impossible and parted the Red Sea or when He parted the Jordan—after the Israelites stepped in.

Example: You decide to go back to school even though you can’t afford it. You put in an application, and lo and behold, out of nowhere you get a scholarship opportunity that makes it possible to go.

4. Formation—As you continue to walk the path that you are on, it becomes so natural to you that you simply don’t question it anymore. This is simply what you do, birds fly, fish swim, and you do X and no longer question if it is the right thing to do. It is so clearly the will of God. It’s been Inspired, Affirmed and Confirmed so often that it is now ingrained in you and you have been formed by obediently following this path. This has become second nature to you—or more appropriately, this is your renewed nature in action.

Example: You made a decision to volunteer as part of a ministry. Despite your misgivings you felt God lead you into it and you did it. Now you have been doing it for so long that it has become a part of your life—and it gives you life. Every time you go, you just know that this is where you are supposed to be.

5. Generation—Your life with God blesses others. Your journey and the wisdom you got from walking this path now provides Inspiration, Affirmation, Confirmation and Formation for others. You generate new life in others as they seek to journey with God.

Example: You have been following God’s leading in your marriage for years. And, now younger couples are beginning to come around you asking for insight on how to do this life. You get to pass on what you have learned to a younger generation.

However, know that if you are really following God, you will make an impact in this world and you WILL face Opposition.

So, there is a sixth principle to be aware of:

6. Opposition—In this life, you will have trouble. There are forces at work that actively oppose the will of God. As you step into following God’s leading, you will likely encounter some push back. This could come at any point along the journey. You may encounter it as early on as Inspiration. It may come to try to counteract Affirmation. It may create counterfeit experiences to try to tell you that the Confirmation you received isn’t legit. It may come to upend your formation and make you doubt your course. Or it may come to condemn your Generation and tell you that you don’t really have anything of value to offer others.

Example: When I felt God’s call to go to Bible college, I told my mentor who I trusted very much. He dismissed it outright and told me that I was arrogant to even consider college. And, he wanted me to abandon the idea of going to a Christian school. In fact, he said that I had too much baggage to ever consider going into any kind of God-related vocation.

I really valued that man’s opinion. But he was just wrong!

Something else was speaking through him—something negative, something that wanted to keep me playing small.

Opposition often comes from up close. Sometimes it comes from those we love.
But, if we are wise, what often is meant to hurt us can actually confirm that we are indeed on the right path.

No Christian gets through life without encountering Opposition! When it comes try to remember that your battle is not with flesh and blood but with dark forces and spiritual strongholds that stand opposed to the will of God.

Now, just because we run into obstacles or opposition is not, in and of itself, an indication that we are on the right path. But when it comes in combination with the other parts of this process it is a good indication that you are headed in the right direction!

Seldom does something worthwhile come easy. But Jesus promised that the gates of Hell would not withstand the advance of his people.

As we step forward, bringing bits and pieces of Heaven to Earth, we will see trouble. But we will see victories as well! And, even more so, we will see how God can transform our lives as well as the world around us.

I am sure you have your stories about how God has come through for you. Maybe you could share one today. Can you tell someone about a time that God did something amazing in your life?

I’d love to hear a good story. I am sure that you have plenty of them to share.

What are some of the things God has done that told you that you were on the right path?

How do you know when you are stepping into God’s will or following His leading?

Blessings,
Patrick

Man’s Search for Meaning is one of the best books I have ever read. If you have not read yet, then you really should. I plan to write more about it in a future post.

But, for now, you should know that the author, Victor Frankl, was a Jewish psychologist who had his world ripped apart when he was thrown into the Nazi concentration camp at Auschwitz.

Frankl lost everything and everyone he loved. Yet, amid such incredible suffering, he witnessed firsthand how a prisoner’s mindset made the difference between surviving and succumbing to the situation. Frankl saw that a prisoner’s mindset quite literally made the difference between life and death.

In that place, where everything had been stripped from him, Frankl discovered that “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of human freedoms—to choose one’s own way.”

Frankl found that no matter what, we still retain the power to choose the way we will respond.

We retain the power of choice.

Isn’t that interesting? Free will—the thing that we are told that God values so much—remains even when all else is lost. Wow!

Now tell me, why is it so hard to believe that we are actually in control of how we respond to life and its myriad of frustrating and unfair situations?

Why does it feel so untrue that we have the power to choose?

I know in my life it often feels like I am simply riding the waves that life sends out while trying to keep my head above water. I generally feel like I am responding, even reacting, to the things that life throws at me.

But then there was Victor Frankl and he discovered the power to choose his attitude even while suffering from being frost-bitten, flea-bitten and while literally starving to death in a Nazi concentration camp.

I suppose if there was ever a place to test whether hope can prevail, it was Auschwitz.

… [selah]…

Now, let me shift gears mentally for a moment.

Earlier today I was in prayer and I asked the Lord what He wanted to say to people in this post. I heard Him respond “Enjoy your life.”

Enjoy your life?

I was a little surprised. I was expecting something that might be a little more helpful for solving some of life’s more pressing problems.

But no, God said “Enjoy your life.”

Intrigued, I asked Him to tell me more. And, to my surprise, He told me a LOT more.

I felt the still small voice of God’s Spirit rise up like a lion getting ready to pounce. He got loud, serious and direct. Inside my heart I heard the Voice of Thunder say:

ENJOY YOUR LIFE. I WANT PEOPLE TO ENJOY THEIR LIVES. I AM NOT A KILLJOY; I AM THE MAKER OF JOY! I CREATED THE HEAVENS AND THE EARTH TO BRING LIFE. I MADE THE GARDEN A PARADISE OF EVERLASTING PLEASURE AND I AM THE ONE WHO PAID THE PRICE TO REDEEM IT ALL. I WILL BRING THE RESTORATION OF ALL THINGS. I WILL BRING EVERLASTING JOY. FOR NOW, KNOW THAT BY ENJOYING YOUR LIVES YOU ARE BRINGING A LITTLE TASTE OF HEAVEN TO EARTH. YOU ARE BRINGING THE QUALITIES AND ESSENCE OF ETERNITY INTO THE PRESENT. BRING JOY AND YOU INVITE HEAVEN INTO THE ATMOSPHERE. AND, WHEN YOU BRING HEAVEN INTO THE WORLD EVERYTHING CHANGES!

Wow! Like I said, I wasn’t expecting that. But I loved it!

It got me to thinking…

I think we all want to be happy. And, many of us Christians know that there is a real difference between the happiness of having good circumstances and the joy that comes from deep within.

I think that most of us believers choose joy—at least on an intellectual level.

But, what about on a heart level?

If so many of us are choosing joy, why don’t more of us actually look joyful?

I know that mentally we make the choice to choose joy. But, how do we live it, how do we truly choose it?

So, I asked God again for more insight. This time I did not hear the thunder. Instead, the Still Small Voice came to my heart, speaking barely above a whisper:

… savor your senses… practice gratitude… exercise humility…
… eliminate hurry, worry, pride, urgency and arrogance…
… take down your defensive walls…
… risk appearing foolish and laugh at yourself if you do…
…smile…

All that sounded good and practical enough (albeit not necessarily easy to do).

Then the scripture ran through my head, “We are fools for the sake of Christ”. I received the divine invitation to laugh at myself more, to risk appearing foolish for the sake of enjoying my life in Christ.

In Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer, C.S. Lewis wrote that “Joy is the serious business of Heaven.” Lewis envisioned life in Eternity as being filled with such a degree of play and dance that it would seem scandalously frivolous to us when viewed through the lens of our overly pragmatic lives here on Earth.

I think he was right.

When we bring a new level of the frivolity and joy to bear upon our world, we bring a little bit of Heaven’s reality into the atmosphere around us.

To choose joy in the midst of toil and suffering is to bring a little bit of Heaven to Earth.

Even to find joy in the small things, in the mundane and mediocre, has the power to shift our entire experience of life.

To exercise our last great freedom—the power to choose our mindset—and choose to live in joy, is to honor God’s ultimate intention for the universe.

For, if we are made to enjoy life with God then it follows that we can start that right now, wherever we are.

In fact, it is a grace and a privilege for us to know joy as we do—to know Christ. Therefore, it is an affront to those who don’t yet know that gift if we refuse to cherish it; if we refuse to exercise it.

So, it seems a mandate—a direct order from Heaven—that you and I must choose joy!

We simply must insist upon enjoying our lives!

What a wonderful duty!

What a privilege to serve a God who is so committed to our joy that He insists that we that we actually practice enjoying our lives!

In fact, many of the Old Testament laws, like the Sabbath and the festival celebrations, bear witness to the fact that God wants His people to enjoy life. And, when Jesus came, wasn’t he always spending time hanging out at parties and having dinner with friends?

So, here we are, left with only one real choice.

As Christ followers, as the people of God, we must choose joy.
We must choose joy and then actively pursue it like someone who is drowning pursues a life-preserver. For that is exactly what joy is!

Joy is our life-preserver.

We have the power to choose our response to life. We have the power to let the joy rooted deep within us come up high and blossom out.

Suffering in life may be unavoidable. But misery is mostly a mindset.

Let us choose our mindset wisely.

Let us choose to respond from the well of Living Water deep within!

Brothers and sisters, let us help each other smile more and become a winsome people.

Let us choose joy!


Blessings,
Patrick Meyers

One of the questions I’m often asked by potential clients is, “Do you take insurance?” I mean, you pay for health insurance for a reason and you want to use it when you can, right? While I don’t participate in direct billing with insurance companies, there are many insurance policies that will reimburse for treatment you’ve received. These are generally known as Preferred Provider Organizations (PPO) or Point of Service (POS).

There are a lot of myths in regards to Christian counseling. Probably the biggest myth is that Christian counseling is about telling people what God wants them to do! Today’s Christian counseling is not about telling you what to do our believe, but rather it’s about exploring how ones faith (Regardless of what that is) impacts their own identity and ultimately their life story.

Do you know a boss or leader who is super-confrontational? Lacks tact? Sees everything in black or white? Can win the point, but lose the person? Henry Cloud and John Townsend talk about what might be missing in that leader's life

"Randy, a bright financial manager, had achieved much success in his field. As chief financial officer for several companies, he was valued for his ability to forecast a company’s financial needs. But whenever someone questioned his decisions or opposed him in any way, he could get vicious. He had a knack for turning normal conflicts into win-lose confrontations; matters of simple disagreement quickly became adversarial. His basic orientation was 'for' and 'against.' If someone questioned him, he assumed that person was 'against' him, and he began to mobilize his defenses to fight off the 'attack.'

This leader lived by fear rather than by faith. In early childhood he had not had been able to put his mom's love inside. He could not "....write kindness and truth on the tablets of his heart." His heart was too busy fighting an imagined enemy.

"Randy’s pattern of insecurity interfered with his ability to keep a job. He would do well for a while in a company, his strengths shining and the CEO generally pleased with his accomplishments, until his adversarial mode of operation would divide the management team. Lines would be drawn until finally the president would figure out what was going on and let Randy go. Randy’s insecurity came from a lack of basic trust at his core. Without a mother’s love inside, Randy experienced the world as a hostile and dangerous place. His role in this world was to defend himself."

Consequences and hard work can do much to help this person heal and grow. Accountability, anger management, therapy and executive coaching can help him get the love and integrity in his heart along with deep, real friendship where he can bring his real self with it's needs and hurts to a safe place.

Cloud, Henry, Boundaries And Leaders: How To Be Ridiculously In Charge

Cloud, Henry, Townsend, John. The Mom Factor: Dealing with the Mother You Had, Didn't Have, or Still Contend With (p. 30).