Yes, You read the title right! There are ways God speak to us that we don’t know He’s the One speaking.
God has been speaking since we had a clue about Him in Genesis chapter one. He has spoken to people of different ages, genders, and different situations. God spoke to Adam. He communicated with Noah. He instructed Abraham. He spoke with prophets and also to common people in the Bible.
God speaks to us in different ways. He is the mastermind behind all of creation. He cannot be limited in any way. He is the Almighty God and He’s everywhere all at the same time. He cannot run out of means to communicate with His people. Guess what? One time He even spoke through a donkey!
Every day, when God wants to make known His will to you, there are one thousand and one ways he could choose to communicate one message. God speaks to us through the Bible. He speaks through an inner witness. He could choose to speak through dreams or through a child in the mall. God speaks to us by several means.
When you understand different means through which God speaks to us, you’ll become more sensitive to His leading and guidance. Therefore, you’ll make fewer mistakes and enjoy a better life. This is what this post is meant to achieve- helping you live a better life by identifying when God is speaking.
God Speaks Through an Inner Witness
“The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,” (Rom 8:16 NKJV)
The inner witness is the voice of God in the children of God. It is the indicator of God’s voice deep within man.
As children of God, when we get to a crossroads where we desperately need God’s leading and direction; the inner witness helps our soul to make the decision that flows with the will and plan of God for us.
This witness comes like a breezed idea. It comes like a spark of knowledge in our consciousness. It is a ‘click’ from the Spirit of God that brings our mind to the awareness of the will of God.
Should I say, unfortunately? The inner witness doesn’t come with a siren and lightning, like that of a fire truck. It comes quietly and gently; making it possible to be missed amid the noise around. It doesn’t force itself on you; so you have a choice to accept or reject it.
I think is it safe to say that the inner witness is the commonest way God speaks to us, but it is also the most-ignored means to hear from God.
You may want to read a post I wrote with a more comprehensive discussion on how God speaks to us through the inner witness here.
God Speaks Through Inner Peace
Peace is not necessarily a state of quietness in the environment. It is the state of quietness within, irrespective of the happenings without.
When it seems like you have every reason to be troubled and perplexed, but you realize that deep inside of you, there is this sense of relaxation and quietness. God could be speaking and giving you His assurance that He is in control of the situation.
Have you been in a situation where you made a decision and boom! You started feeling this ‘unease’ deep in your heart? You don’t know why or what could be responsible for such sudden lack of peace, but then, you can’t deny it started immediately you made that decision. You know what? That was God telling you, “You just made a wrong decision”. I’ll advise that you press the ‘undo’ button if you can. And press it ASAP.
There are even times you may begin to feel that the peace in your heart left suddenly. Not because you just made a decision; neither is it because you just did something wrong. At such time, God could be communicating to your soul about an unknown ‘danger’ you need to pray against, or a sign you need to do some meditation that gets you into your inner self to find out some stuff.
“I listen carefully to what God the Lord is saying, for he speaks peace to his faithful people…”. (Ps 85:8 NLT)
How Does God Speak Through Creations?
The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. (Psalm 19:1-2)
Have you ever gazed at the sky and wondered if God could speak to you right there and then? It’s possible to see the clouds in the sky take on the shape of an Angel and you almost felt it was an answer to your prayers.
I’m sure you’ve been filled with awe sometimes, as you took a walk through a park or a garden or drive through the mountains and hills, dazing at the wonders of nature. The beauty of the blooming flowers, the smell of the rain and dew-graced grass. All of these tell us that there is a great being behind all that we see in nature.
God does speak through His creation. If we will pay closer attention to God’s creation, we will realize that God is speaking through them.
For His invisible attributes, namely: His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made.”Romans 1:20
“Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?
And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?” Matt 6:26-30.
These scenarios, give a picture of God communicating His caring nature, loving-kindness, and tender mercy. This is God speaking to everyone in need and fear of lack, that He’s cable, willing and compassionate enough to provide for His children. God speaks through nature.
Have you seen a hen with her brood of chicks and felt it impressed in your heart that if this hen could give birth, I could too? I have. If Jesus referred to the things in nature, it means God can indeed speak through creation.
Anytime you find yourself sad, depressed, lonely, or felling far from God, look around you; and you’ll hear God speaking to you through nature.
God can use even ants to communicate with you. Yes, He did that in Proverbs 6:6-9. “Take a lesson from the ants, …. Learn from their ways and be wise! For though they have no king to make them work, yet they labor hard all summer, gathering food for the winter.” If you’re sensitive enough, you’ll hear God speaking through means we often ignore.
Many people have found solace, peace, and answers to prayers as they took a walk on the beach, or just watching the birds eating seeds thrown at them, or sitting quietly in front of their yards, watching the clouds pass by. Every child of God should take advantage of how God speaks through creation.
Birds flying in the hair should remind us of how God can provide our needs. Though the flowers are beautiful, they do not last. This may be God communicating that nothing is permanent.
If there’s any passage of the Bible that speaks expressly about all God’s creation having a voice that speaks, it is Psalms 19:1-6. This includes animals, trees, forests, flowers, rain, thunderstorms, clouds in the sky. Virtually everything God created has the ability to communicate to us, teach us, and give the very wisdom we need to do something challenging.
Nature has a way of enhancing the stillness we need to hear from God. The next time you are out, look around and take a closer look at those flowers around, or those birds chirping in the air. Who knows? God could be speaking to you through them. Apart from the truth that nature itself is God’s words in reality.
Hearing God When He Speaks Through Others
Sometimes, God may speak to you through others. Hearing God speak through others is an important aspect to consider to be led by God. Most times and very often, God speaks to us through others who are in the faith as we are. He can even speak to you through the vilest sinner or the person you consider as ‘enemy’.
The people through which God speaks to us may not be aware of it themselves. Sometimes, God will intentionally bring some of these people into your life so He can speak through them to you or have you speak to them.
Hearing God speak through others can be a mighty blessing.
How do you know if God is speaking through others to you? Here are ways you can decipher if God might be speaking to you through someone.
- Through Conversations
There have been times I heard some people say some things to me and I sensed a quickening in my spirit and knew it was God speaking to me through them. It just might be during conversations with them like during a phone call or while brainstorming about a matter.
Be sensitive while with your friends, pastor, family, or relatives especially those who are spiritually sensitive.
- Through Their Teachings/Sermons/Songs
Sometimes, you hear or see a man on TV preaching and you sensed in your spirit that those words he just said are for you. That is God speaking to you.
Those words may hit you hard or serve as encouragement in hard times; whatever it does, God uses people to talk to you.
You can be in church and God would send a word directly to you through the worship leader, or the pastor.
If you aren’t doing that already, you need to always be on the lookout for a word from God. Be more sensitive as you fellowship with other brethren. You could receive a word from God through them that would deliver, bless, or correct you so you can become a better person.
- In Their Prayer Time
Sometimes, in people’s prayer time or fellowship with God, or even randomly, they may receive a word directly meant for you.
The messenger may not understand why and how such a word applies to you, but when delivered, you’ll know this can only be God.
- Through People’s Dreams
God may also cause others to dream about you, give them a word, a vision, a word of wisdom or knowledge about you through their dreams (1 Cor. 12:8-10).
Has it happened to you before? Have you had a dream about someone falling into temptation? God is letting you in on something about to happen to the other person and you will need to stand in place of prayer for them and perhaps also warn them to be more watchful.
Although God uses others to speak to us as He uses us to speak to others, nevertheless, we must be careful of what we hear and take to heart from others. It’s possible they might not be speaking God’s mind but was only been concerned about you. If a word is from God for you through others, there are two major ways to confirm if it’s truly from God.
- It Confirms what you’re already aware of.
What they said will be a confirmation of what God has already told you or God will give another confirmation either directly to you or others still.
2. It will be in-line with the word of God.
Another thing to note to confirm that God is speaking to us through others is that God cannot say anything contrary to His Word. No. Whatever God is saying to you will be in His written Word. You may not find it verbatim or literally in the bible, but you will always be able to relate it in God’s Word. It must be consistent with the known will of God- the Bible.
That’s why you need to always fill and renew your minds with His Word daily.
How Does God Speak to Us Through the Bible
John 1:1 says “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
2Tim.3:16-17 also says “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
Whatever we are looking for can be found in the Bible. Joy, Happiness, Peace of Mind, Mercy, and Grace, the Word of God always have an answer. Did I just say an answer? Oh, I mean THE answer.
The Bible contains the Mind of God. Amidst the stories, the parables, the battles fought and won, the prophecies, the angelic visits, and the encounters with God, lies the very mind of God for us today.
Some people tend to look at the Bible as a book of the past but this isn’t so. The bible is written for us! For our benefits!
The Psalmist said in Psalm 119:105 “Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path”.
God’s Word is quick and powerful. The Words of God, when reading with the right perspective, is as powerful as it was back then and now and forever. It has the same powerful effects it has always have.
There is the Rhema of God (God’s Revealed Word) and there are the Logos of God( His Written Word). The Rhema of God brings alive the Logos. They go hand in hand. If God is saying anything to you today (Rhema), it will always aligns with His Logos ( the Written word in the Bible). While studying the Bible, It is God who gives understanding and revelation of what we are reading.
But you may be asking, how do I know that God is speaking to me through the Bible?
This is how to know.
The Word Will Jump At You! Yes, the word can jump at you!
As you study, the Holy Spirit will shed Light on a particular scripture or verse(s). You will suddenly understand better, see how it applies to you and your present situation.
This ‘Rhema’, may also come as a form of a deeper understanding of God’s Word as you meditate on your Bible memory verse(s) while going through your daily activities.
God may also speak to you by giving you scriptures in your dream to meditate on. This one of the ways God speaks to us.
At a season of my life, while I was trying to understand my identity in Christ, God gave me more understanding in the Book of Romans through my dreams. It made me always want to go back to the scriptures, read, and understand the mind of God more.
God Speaks Through Dreams and Visions
Whether God speaks through dreams is nothing to argue about. God speaks through dreams both in the Old and New Testaments. Through dreams, He has communicated with different people of different dispensations, irrespective of age or gender. It is one of the most common ways God speaks to the people of the Bible.
Through dreams, God spoke to Joseph who later became the ‘prime minister’ of Egypt. He spoke to the butler and the baker in the prison with Joseph in their dreams. He spoke to King Nebuchadnezzar in dreams. He also made known Himself to Samuel through dreams. In the New Testament, in the dream of the night, He instructed Joseph on how to keep baby-Jesus safe from death.
Up until now, God still speaks to us through dreams and visions. Your dreams should not be taken for granted. And that is not to say every dream must be taken seriously. There are dreams to be ignored while there are some to pray about. The emphasis here is that God can and does speak through dreams.
Your dream might be to give an instruction, a redirection, a piece of information, or caution. It could also be a form of consolation or confrontation from the devil.
When confused about your dream, you can be helped in the interpretation if properly narrated. Although, you are the best person to give the most appropriate interpretation of your dream. However, you have to take caution, because dreams can be misinterpreted by you or others.
The scope of this post cannot accommodate how much I have to tell you about dreams. So I made a whole post on God speaks through dreams and circumstances.
God Speaks Through Circumstances Too
Many times we assume circumstances are coincidences. Well, some are; while some are means by which God is passing out a message to us. If we are sensitive, we will be able to unravel the message that comes with each circumstance.
There are things the enemy causes to happen to us, in which God can turn around for our good. As believers, we must understand that nothing happens to us, but for us. No matter how it may seem at first, God can make it work for our good.
“And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose”. (Rom 8; 28 NASV).
In every situation you may find yourself, always ask yourself “what is God trying to communicate through this?” He could be saying something through strange or repeated circumstances. Paying attention to closely observe things will give you hints on what God might be communicating with those happenings.
There is a caution to take here. The enemy too orchestrates circumstances. This is why you have to be careful, so you don’t submit to circumstances that you should take a stand against in prayer. Be sure you’re not enduring what God intends for you to enjoy.
So when going through circumstances, confirm the source. Is it fashioned by God or instigated by the enemy? You’ll get an answer to this as you spend time in prayer and in the study of the word to be sure things are in line with God’s word.
Find out more about how God speaks through circumstances and how you should handle circumstances to work for your good here.
As I wrap up on this post, it is important to emphasize that God always speaks. The challenge is not from God, it is often with our inability to recognize His voice when He speaks. On several occasions, in any situation that we could ignore, God speaks to us.
With this post, I believe you will become more conscious of how God speaks to us every day even in ways that can be ignored or missed.
Do me a favor, let others know about these ways God speaks to us that can be ignored. So they too can begin to pay attention to details for directions from God.
I’ll be glad to hear from you through the comment box. What do you think about this post and how can it be improved? Thank you for your feedback.
Enjoy!