He is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living. (Mark 12:27, NKJV)

And God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM." And He said, "Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you.'" (Exodus 3:14, NKJV)

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. (Hebrews 13:8, NKJV)

For the word (logos) of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12, NKJV)

The words (rhema) that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life. (John 6:63, NKJV)

The Lord communicates to us through both His written word (the Bible), and His spoken word. This has always been God's plan. Even before there was a "written word," there were stories that were passed down through the generations, and the Lord also continually spoke to His people. But do we really need a current spoken word from God? Absolutely! You couldn't possibly maintain a relationship with your finance through letters that were written to her mother long before she was born.

God is the "God of the living," and the eternal God of the present. God is continually speaking, but we are NOT listening:

For since the beginning of the world Men have not heard nor perceived by the ear, Nor has the eye seen any God besides You, Who acts for the one who waits for Him. You meet him who rejoices and does righteousness, Who remembers You in Your ways. (Isaiah 64:4-5, NKJV)

"Therefore thus says the LORD God of hosts, the God of Israel: 'Behold, I will bring on Judah and on all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the doom that I have pronounced against them; because I have spoken to them but they have not heard, and I have called to them but they have not answered.'" (Jeremiah 35:17, NKJV)

The Lord is continually speaking. If we are really listening, we will hear, just like the magi (Matthew 2:1-12) who were in Babylon several thousand miles away, but read about the birth of Jesus in the stars. On the other hand, neither Belshazzar nor his "wise men" (also magi) were paying attention, even when an angel wrote a message on the wall (Daniel 5:1-30). The only reason the wise men were unable to interpret the writing was that they absolutely refused to listen to the Lord, but Daniel was listening, and was able to deliver the message.

Or consider all the messages the Lord gave to Ezekiel for people of foreign lands who would probably never hear them (Ezekiel 25:1-7, 28:1-19, 32:17-32). The Lord was actually speaking to them, but they wouldn't have heard under any circumstances anyway, even if Ezekiel were to speak to them directly, face to face. The Lord is continually speaking, but people are only rarely listening.

The question is, are you listening? Have you made a legitimate request to the Lord which He has answered, but you have missed because you weren't listening? Did He try to speak through a stranger, or a friend, or a child, or did He reveal something to you when you were reading His word, but you simply chose to ignore it? The Lord will answer your prayers, but you must be listening. Remember Balaam (Numbers 22:1-24:25). He was told definitely what the Lord wanted, but He chose to disobey and almost lost his life until the Lord spoke audibly to him through his donkey.

Are you listening, or are you waiting for a donkey to speak to you?

Copyright (c) 2007 Jon Straumfjord