Awoke To Hear God’s Voice
I woke up at 2:15 am one Thursday morning, and I sat up in bed in the dark and quietness of the morning a bit groggy. I thought about getting up and going to the bathroom. Next, I thought about going to read a chapter from my Bible and perhaps talk to God. I paused my thoughts for a few seconds just sitting quietly in the dark not ready to get up.
Suddenly I heard softly and distinctly the words: “Hi Verna” in my head. I felt astonished at first for I knew this thought did not come from me. I’ve heard Yahweh’s Holy Spirit speak to me many times in the past directing my life that helped me in critical times and important periods. This, however, was the only time the Holy Spirit spoke to me by my name simply saying hi to me–without any agenda to protect me, direct me or for some critical purpose.
The Holy Spirit apparently just wanted to communicate in a more personable manner that I felt unaccustomed to–not a foreign voice in my head just an unexpected and alluring comment: “Hi Verna”.
We all like being called by our names, and we all appreciate when people remember our names. Our names are important to us. We are typically open to others and positive towards them when they speak to us using our names.
God Speaks To Samuel
The Holy Spirit’s voice spoke slowly and calmly, and my first thought was God just said “Hi Verna.” I suppose I should have said hi Yahweh, but I thought of the story of Samuel in I Samuel 3. In the story of Samuel, the Lord called Samuel three times by name. Samuel thought Eli called him so he said to Eli “Here am I.” Eli discerned that God was calling Samuel and told Samuel the next time the Lord calls you by name say, “Speak, LORD, for Your servant is listening.” If you’d like to read the story of 1 Samuel you can read it below otherwise skip over this section to continue reading the article below:
And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days; there was no open vision.
2 And it came to pass at that time, when Eli was laid down in his place, and his eyes began to wax dim, that he could not see;
3 And ere the lamp of God went out in the temple of the LORD, where the ark of God was, and Samuel was laid down to sleep;
4 That the LORD called Samuel: and he answered, Here am I.
5 And he ran unto Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou calledst me. And he said, I called not; lie down again. And he went and lay down.
6 And the LORD called yet again, Samuel. And Samuel arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. And he answered, I called not, my son; lie down again.
7 Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, neither was the word of the LORD yet revealed unto him.
8 And the LORD called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. And Eli perceived that the LORD had called the child.
9 Therefore Eli said unto Samuel, Go, lie down: and it shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak, LORD; for thy servant heareth. So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
10 And the LORD came, and stood, and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, Speak; for thy servant heareth.
11 And the LORD said to Samuel, Behold, I will do a thing in Israel, at which both the ears of every one that heareth it shall tingle.
12 In that day I will perform against Eli all things which I have spoken concerning his house: when I begin, I will also make an end.
13 For I have told him that I will judge his house for ever for the iniquity which he knoweth; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not.
14 And therefore I have sworn unto the house of Eli, that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be purged with sacrifice nor offering for ever.
15 And Samuel lay until the morning, and opened the doors of the house of the LORD. And Samuel feared to shew Eli the vision.
16 Then Eli called Samuel, and said, Samuel, my son. And he answered, Here am I.
17 And he said, What is the thing that the LORD hath said unto thee? I pray thee hide it not from me: God do so to thee, and more also, if thou hide any thing from me of all the things that he said unto thee.
18 And Samuel told him every whit, and hid nothing from him. And he said, It is the LORD: let him do what seemeth him good.
19 And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground.
20 And all Israel from Dan even to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the LORD.
21 And the LORD appeared again in Shiloh: for the LORD revealed himself to Samuel in Shiloh by the word of the LORD.
Like Samuel I didn’t know how to respond. This never happened to me before. I know of no one who has spoke of this occurring with them except in the story of Samuel. So I just went to the bathroom and pondered the incident while drifting back to sleep in my bed.
Seeking Advice From Christian Counselors
When I woke up I clearly remembered the incident. I asked a christian coworker who told me she suspects God intends to start communicating with me. I asked my mother who said “praise God … that’s great … what a blessing!” Deep down I knew it was God.
The question I had was how was I suppose to respond. What does God want? What should I be doing? Am I on a new mission that will need me to communicate more with God? I just didn’t know.
I had so many questions. I didn’t have time to listen; I was too busy thinking.
How many of us are too busy to hear from God? We want Yahweh to direct our lives. We pray for Yahweh to mold us into His Son’s character. We ask Yahweh to make us a light that lead others to Him. We ask Yahweh to do so much for us. Then when Yahweh tries to speak to us through our Spirit with His still small voice, we cannot seem to quiet ourselves down long enough to listen to what He has to tell us. That was my problem in my excitement. I ran to everyone and my computer to understand what Yahweh wanted to tell me instead of running to Yahweh to say speak LORD your servant is listening.
In order for Yahweh to direct our lives, we have to spend time listening to Him. We have to read His words daily and stay constantly in prayer throughout our day.
I prayed to Yahweh diligently each day by phone with my husband heading to work about family, friends, coworkers, lands to establish in a foreign country, witty ideas of inventions, fulfilling Yahweh’s will for my life and the lives of family members and allowing Yahweh to possess one hundred percent control of our lives. Now after seeking Yahweh for these things for innumerable days, weeks and months suddenly this breakthrough moment with Yahweh’s Holy Spirit occurs. I’m excited, but I forget to tell Yahweh to speak and that His servant is listening. I didn’t recall in the morning what Eli told Samuel to do exactly, and I was too busy thinking to stop to listen and respond to the Holy Spirit.
Then a couple days on a Friday evening on the Sabbath, I later I did some research on the internet. In researching what this encounter from God might mean I stumbled upon this website that gave me insight by Mary Lou Caskey in an article titled the following: What Does It Mean When God Calls You by Your Name?
Mary Lou Caskey says God is “calling me to the honor of enjoying His presence while He enjoys being with me!” She ends by saying, “May you enjoy having God “summon” you by name, knowing that He delights in you!” Finally she adds: “What does it mean to you that God delights in you?”
Bob Fraser wrote the following review below Mary’s article that resonated with me:
Psalm 37:4-6. To “delight in someone you have to get to know them. God is inviting me to get to know Him.”
Psalm 37:4-7 below is one of my favorite verses in the Bible:
4 Delight thyself also in the Lord: and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.
5 Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.
6 And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday.
7 Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.
Lately the desires in my heart is how to establish a business in a foreign country and allow family members to enjoy the business too; however, my life is here in America. How do I take this leap of faith and would doing so be wise? What does God think and want me to do? I’ve been praying on this and waiting on the Yahweh to direct my footsteps. I do not want to live my life in fear limiting my possibilities, but at the same time I do not want to make an unwise decision. So I pray daily and wait on Yahweh.
When I heard the Holy Spirit speak one morning on May 17, 2018 the following words: “Hi Verna” I knew this was significant moment in my life. I’m going to Yahweh and say speak Lord for your servant is listening.
When God speaks to you how will you respond?
Quotes to Encourage and Guide Your Life
The Bible verses below speak to me. I stuck in a few Confucius quotes that resonated with me too. You can skip these or read them if you need encouragement and allow Yahweh to strengthen you through His words below:
But now thus saith the LORD that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine. (Isaiah 43:1 KJV)
“Remember these things, O Jacob, And Israel, for you are My servant; I have formed you, you are My servant, O Israel, you will not be forgotten by Me. (Isaiah 44:21 KJV)
“Education brings confidence, Confidence brings hope and Hope brings peace.”
–Confucius.
Confucius was a Chinese teacher, editor, politician and philosopher born in 551 BC in the Zou, Lu, Zhou Kingdom. His ideas influenced the civilization of East Asia.
Since I’m seeking wisdom from Yahweh in directing my steps, I’m open to how Yahweh may lead me. I stumbled upon this second quote by Confucius below:
“By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.”
― Confucius
In continuing to search for wisdom I come upon another great quote and another to pause and ponder in helping me in my decisions.
“The man of wisdom is never of two minds;
the man of benevolence never worries;
the man of courage is never afraid.”
― Confucius
“To put the world in order, we must first put the nation in order; to put the nation in order, we must first put the family in order; to put the family in order; we must first cultivate our personal life; we must first set our hearts right.”
― Confucius
Ephesians 2:10 For we are His creation, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time so that we should walk in them.
When we draw near to Yahweh, He will draw near to us. May you invite Yahweh into your life daily so He knows He is welcome. May your life light the way for others to seek Yahweh the true light of the world.
Micah 6:8 ESV
He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?
Amos 3:3 ESV
“Do two walk together, unless they have agreed to meet?
Psalm 119:133 ESV
Keep steady my steps according to your promise, and let no iniquity get dominion over me.
James 4:7 ESV
Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
James 4:8 ESV
Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
Isaiah 30:21 ESV
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.
Hebrews 12:1 ESV
Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,
1 John 4:8 ESV
Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.
Job 22:21 ESV
Agree with God, and be at peace; thereby good will come to you.
Genesis 17:1 ESV
When Abram was ninety-nine years old the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless,
Psalm 37:1-40 ESV
Of David. Fret not yourself because of evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers! For they will soon fade like the grass and wither like the green herb. Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act. …
1 John 2:6 ESV
Whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.
Joshua 1:8 ESV
This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.
1 Peter 1:15 ESV
But as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct,
1 John 1:7 ESV
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.
Hebrews 11:1-40 ESV
Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the people of old received their commendation. By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible. By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks. By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because God had taken him. Now before he was taken he was commended as having pleased God. …
2 Corinthians 6:14 ESV
Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness?
Leviticus 26:12 ESV
And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people.
John 15:1-6 ESV
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. …
Psalm 56:13 ESV
For you have delivered my soul from death, yes, my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.
Matthew 28:20 ESV
Teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.