Day 229

I've been in RED sandals all afternoon, on this 229th Day of  The Red Shoe Project. I met with two girlfriends today, and both brought up the topic of Fasting and Hearing God's Voice.  It seems that God is speaking to many about separating themselves from the everyday routine and drawing in a little closer to Him for a Special Word.  With that said, many have asked me:

How do I distinguish God's Voice 

from all the other voices in my head?

Part 2:  

Recognizing God's Voice

from amongst the crowd.

Personally, I have found there to be 4 categories in which all the voices in my head fit into.

1. The voice of the Natural Man
2. The voice of the Enemy
3. The voice of Reason
4. The voice of God

If I can recognize which voices fall into which categories, I can better distinguish which voice is God's voice. Perhaps these observations will help:

1.  The voice of the Natural Man.

There are many voices that fall into the category of the Natural Man, but the goal of all of them is to feed my flesh. I can easily pick out these worldly voices because they all try to appeal to my senses through one of the following:

1. The lust of the eyes
2. The lust of the flesh
3. The pride of life

"For everything in the world -- the lust of the flesh, 

the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life --

comes not from the Father, but from the world."

1 John 2:16

The lust of the eyes is what I look at.

"Wow!  Take a look at that!"

The lust of the flesh is what I taste, touch, smell and hear.

"I wonder if that tastes as good as they say it does?"

"I bet it would feel good to..."

"That smell is so enticing.  It reminds me of..."

"Did you hear what they were saying?"

The pride of life is all about thinking more of myself that I ought to.

"I am someone special... better than most!"

"I have something they don't!"

"I know more than they do!"

"I am looking darn good!"

Beware:  

The voice of the Natural Man 

is the voice of Temptation!

It doesn't seem like such a big deal up front, but following the voice of the Natural Man is often the first step in the wrong direction and can lead to spiritual demise!  This is the voice of Temptation.  

Temptation is the desire to do something wrong or unwise. 

It's a strong wanting or wishing 

for something to happen that's 

not a part of God's plan for me.  

Lending my ear to the voice of the Natural Man is like a fish taking the bait... it thinks it's found dinner, but low and behold it's been snagged, in for an unexpected struggle, and set up for major disappointment! 

2. The voice of the Enemy.

The evil voice of the Enemy is perhaps the easiest to differentiate.  It is the native tongue of Satan, himself.  It is the language of Lies.  The goal of these voices is to steal, kill and destroy.  It is jam-packed with negativity and will result in defeat, depression, despair, distrust, and even death.

"The theif comes to steal, kill and destroy..."

John 10:10a

The enemy is out to rob you of a relationship with God.

"You don't really believe all that religious stuff, do you?"

"God isn't real.  He's just for weak people!"

"See... where's your God now?  I told you so!"

Satan will attempt to kill you in order to keep you from connecting with God.

"Your life is meaningless, so why bother to keep on living?"

"You'll never amount to anything, so why not just end it all now!"

"Nobody cares about you.  Your better off dead!"

"Just try this drug... everybody else is doing it!"

Demonic spirits will shred you with lies and abusive words to keep you down.

"You're stupid!" "No one will ever love you!"  "You're a joke!"

"You're fat!"  "You're ugly!"  "You're not good enough!"  

"People are talking about you behind your back."  

"They're laughing at you!" "Nobody cares about you!"

"You can't trust anyone!"  "Your a failure!"  

"It will never get better!" "You'll never amount to anything!"

Remember... these are lies from the pit of hell!  This is what I often refer to as "The Birds."  They can be relentless in their efforts.  Sometimes they drop the craziest thoughts in my mind.  I'm forever shooing them away.  Don't let them nest in your hair!  Take authority over this enemy in Jesus' Name and silence these voices immediately!   Keep this in mind, in the second part of  John 10:10, Jesus says...

"...but I  have come that you might have life, 

and have it to the full!"

John 10:10b

3.  The voice of Reason.

Perhaps the most challenging of all the voices is the voice of Reason.  That's because it makes sense.  It's logical!  When I'm listening to the voice of Reason, I often catch myself saying things like:  "After looking at all my options, this one seems to me to make the most sense."  The problem here is that I rarely think the way God thinks.  What makes sense to me, may not be what God is saying.  He may have another idea in mind.  Isaiah 55:8-9 says this...

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts,

neither are your ways my ways," 

declares the Lord.

"As the heavens are higher than the earth,

so are my ways higher than your ways

and my thoughts than your thoughts."

The voice of reason isn't bad, it just may not be God's.  Yes, God gave me a mind in order to think things through and make good decisions.  But when it comes to those really important things...

I don't want Gail's thoughts --

I want to know GOD's thoughts!

4.  The voice of God.

Most often, when all the other voices have been eliminated, there, sitting in the center of my heart and mind is God's voice, just waiting to be heard.  Over the years I have found there to be three consistent characteristics that make His voice stand out amongst the others.   His voice is always...

1. Gentle and Caring
2. In alignment with The Bible
3. Anointed.

First, God's voice is never harsh, hurtful, hateful and abusive.  It's the exact opporsite...  Gentle and Caring!  Even during times of correction, discipline or when He is presenting something other than what I was hoping for, I always seem to realize that He has my best interests at heart.

Second, His voice is ALWAYS in alignment with His Holy Word.  Thank goodness for that!  This is what makes it so easy to eliminate the other voices.  What's being said just doesn't line up.  

I hate to admit it, but there have been a few times in my life, when I've followed the voice of the Natural Man and tried to justify my works in the flesh by telling myself... "This is an exception to the rule."  "My case is different."  "God will understand and grant me grace."  God will never force me to follow His voice.  The choice is mine.  

 But deep down in my heart... I know exactly what He's saying... I just don't always want to acknowledge it, because it's not what I want to hear.   Hmmm.  

A key sign that I'm in that place is that I'm secretive about whatever it is that's questionable.  I keep it to myself.  Why?  Because I know that if someone else knew, they'd call me out on it!  If it's not under wraps, it's because the people I'm exposed to are in the same boat -- they have secrets of their own.  We all tell each other that it's not a big deal, God still loves us, and that times have changed.  Yes, God does still love us, and times have changed.  Every day, the world is more accepting of ungodly behavior that feeds the flesh.  But God hasn't changed and neither has His Word.

Far too often this is when the "Don't Judge Me!"  card is played.  The thing is, even if people don't judge me, and they shouldn't,  God's voice is still there, lovingly calling me out from the ways of the world and persuading me to trust Him more.  He has a plan for me -- a better way than what the world has to offer!

Lastly, God's word is anointed!  When He speaks to me from The Bible, the words jump off the page at me.  When He delivers his message to me through others, it's packed with power!  When He takes a moment to whisper something directly to my heart... it's as if He's been put on an intercom.  I can't miss it!  His voice melts my soul!  It brings me to my knees.  It causes me to laugh, cry, shout and sing!  I'm overwhelmed at the fact that  God has spoken to me!  He's taken time to meet me where I'm at and talk with me.  How awesome is that?  One thing I know for sure is this: 

 God's desire is for me to know His voice.

"My sheep listen to my voice, 

I know them and they follow me."

John 10:27

With that, I'm kicking off my Red shoes and heading off to bed.  

Tomorrow I'll talk more on the matter. 

See you then!

Gail

Day 228

Today is  Day 228 of  The Red Shoe Project.  My key objective for the next couple days (aside from sporting my Ruby Reds, of course), is to pull together my thoughts on Hearing the Voice of God.  A dear friend of mine shared with me that she is taking some time to fast and pray in order to hear God's voice on a particular matter.  Truth be told, shouldn't we all be doing this on somewhat of a regular basis?  I'm in!

Part 1:  Fasting

While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting,

the Holy Spirit spoke to them saying,  "Set apart for me 

Banabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them."  

So after they fasted and prayed, they placed their hands 

on them and sent them off.  (Acts 13: 2-3)

One of the precursors to this Red Shoe Project was a time of fasting.  I was struggling to understand the personal application of certain scriptures in my life.  I didn't get it!  I didn't know how it worked.  Like Dorothy from Kansas, I couldn't figure how the darn shoes would take me home!  Have you ever had one of those days?  I was frustrated and desperate to hear from God on the matter.

STEP 1.  I sensed God telling me to enter into a time of fasting and prayer.  What does that mean?  At the time, I was sitting at a teacher's feet, taking in all the wisdom I could get.  She seemed to have a clear connection to God.   I noticed that several times she mentioned that periodically, she eats a light meal, once a day, and focuses on private prayer.  She never stated that I should fast -- she just casually mentioned in conversation, that she did.  But the Lord would not let me forget her words.  They haunted me for days until finally I found myself saying, "Maybe I should fast?"  Then the peace came.

Okay... a couple key points here.

(1) Sometimes I can get so wrapped up in the fast itself, that it becomes a huge ordeal that I can easily talk myself out of.  Should I do a water fast or fruits and veggies?  Which is the best?  Should I fast for a day?  A meal a day?  Several days?  How many days?  Hmmm.  We've all been there.  There is something to be said about the proper way to fast, and there are a handful of really good books out there if you want to read more, but this particular teacher made it simple and easy for me...

Eat Lightly and 

Focus on Private Prayer.

(2) Sometimes we think fasting is all about not eating.  It's not.  It's all about our connection with God!  The fast is just a method of removing distractions so that you can focus on hearing God voice.  The distractions may be self initiated.  They could be produced by the busyness of life.  They could also be the result of lack of consecration.  Distractions may come from within ourselves. How do we quiet  the many voices in our head?  Fasting is a way of forcing my flesh to submit to my authority as I submit to God's authority.  That, my friend, is not an easy task.  Basically I'm telling my mind and body... 

"This is really important to me... 

so I'm pushing aside the usual 

priorities and rituals of life  

until I get an answer." 

(3) Fasting is not about losing weight and looking good.  It's about dying to self.  Deciding to fast is best when you're lead by the Spirit to do so.   Whether I want to admit it or not, I can be my own worst enemy... or at least my flesh can.  With that in mind, I know all too well that my flesh is going to fight me tooth and nail on this.  Understand this:  The flesh hates fasting!  But when God's Spirit leads you to fast, He'll give you a  "Divine Determination"  to stick to it.  You'll be committed!

"Interested" is  being "all in" as long as it's convenient.

"Committed" is doing whatever it takes, whether it's convenient or not!

(4)  Keeping things simple is important, but you also want to be strategic.   Most often I stick to a vegan lifestyle.  I eat to live as opposed to living to eat.  I like the spiritual effects that vegan eating has on my life.  So when it comes to fasting,  technically I'm already fasting.  I simply make a few tweaks here and there.  The Lord, however, challenged me to refrain from other things as well, during this special time of drawing in with Him

.  

In order to focus on Private Prayer, 

I need to clear my calendar, my life 

and my mind of all the clutter!

With that in mind, I do my best to avoid taking things in that are not spiritually nutritious.  That means I unplug a lot of electronic devices that can easily suck up a lot of my time like the television, phone, radio, computer, etc.   When I'm fasting, I don't watch that one "cop show" that I always tune in to  every week.  I don't listen to music that doesn't specifically lead me to a place of worship.  I don't browse the internet or hang out on Pinterest.  I don't occupy my mind with games of sorts.  I stay out of conversations that aren't necessary.  I don't go shopping.  I don't go to the spa.  I don't look at fashion magazines.  I skip recreational reading completely.  I even avoid social gatherings that aren't necessary.  Are any of those things wrong?  Of course not!  But during a time of fasting,  I am attempting to free myself up from my normal schedule so that I can spend more time with Him.  That's the goal, and refraining from these  "other things"  helps me achieve that.   

Be honest... have you ever found yourself fasting, but not doing the prayer part?  I know it sounds ridiculous,  but I've done that many times.  All my time was spent on not eating food, and little to no time was spent with Him, in prayer.  Fasting from these "other things" while I'm also abstaining from food,  provides the much needed time for the prayer part.  If I'm going to go to great lengths to fast, I want to make sure I'm reaching my goal.  Isn't that the point?

With my calendar cleared,  I have a lot of extra time on my hands.  I invest that time doing things that will usher me into His presence.  So I read my Bible along with articles or books that will inspire me to draw closer.  I put on music that will prepare my heart to receive from Him.  I keep myself quieter than usual, so that I can hear Him when he calls.  You get the picture.  I was dumbfounded by the distractions that were eliminated by doing this.  It makes a huge difference!  

Tomorrow, I will share more on Hearing the Voice of God,  however, let me ask you something.

Do you really want to hear what 

God has to say regarding your matter?  

and if so, 

Are you prepared to act on His advice?

Two simple questions.  If your answer is YES to both of them, I am confident that He will talk with you.  

Be sure to check out  The Red Shoe Project tomorrow and find out how to distinguish God's Voice from amongst the clatter of voices in your head.  Until then... Keep looking for God in your everyday life!

The gal in Red Shoes, 

Gail

Day 227

Today is Day 227 of  The Red Shoe Project and I 'm off early to a Tea Party at the Country Club, adorned in a little white sundress, paired with cute RED sandals!  On the agenda:

* A Light Lunch with Tea & Cookies

* A Silent Auction for the Hospital

* An Introduction to Giving Circles

Truly,  I am passionate about GIVING... and although I don't have a lot to give, I can give abundantly by merely getting my friends to give along with me!  ...all to good causes, of course!

Several days ago,  I talked about the process of Spiritual Metabolism:  Spiritual Fueling-> Digestion -> and Giving Out.   Day 222 focused on
Places to obtain Daily Bread:  House of Prayer, House of Worship, House of God's Word.  Today I'd like to talk about...  Spiritual Digestion. 

Just what happens when I sit in God's Presence? 

Worship and Magnify Him -- Soak in His Spirit --  

Enter into The Secret Place with Him in prayer?   

How is that "Spiritual Intake"  broken down 

into a divine energy that compels me 

to go out and live my life for Christ?

Putting ourselves in God's Presence, 

sets us up to be transformed.  

We're changed in some way.   We don't leave the way we came.  Something happens!  We're altered -- converted -- overhauled.  Our mindset, thoughts and character are re-shaped, re-arranged, re-organized  so that they align with God... so that we look more like God.  We become less of ourselves and more like Him.

When we're in God's Presence, a number of things can happen.  Here are just a few to consider along with some Bible references.  NOTE:  This is just a starting point.  You could pursue this study even further on your own and find many, many more examples.

1)  God gives specific instruction on what to do, what not to do, what job to complete, where to go and what to say.

Adam walked with God in the Garden.  God gave Adam jobs to do.  He was instructed to name all the animals.  (Genesis 2:19).  Adam was also instructed on what not to do --Eat of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.
Noah was also instructed by God to build an ark. (Genesis 6:14)
Abraham was instructed to pick up everything and leave -- to go to a new place God would show him.    (Genesis 12:1)  He was also tested by God when God instructed him to sacrifice Isaac, his only son, and at the last moment God provided a ram. (Genesis 22:8)
Joshua was instructed by God to lead His people into the promised land. (Joshua 1:2)
Samuel was a priest and prophet that God instructed on many occasions, very specifically, where to go, what to do and what to say. One of those times, he was instructed to anoint young David as king. (1 Samuel 16:1-13)
Peter was given very specific instruction for the gentile believers.
(Acts 10: 9-16)
Saul who became The Apostle Paul was told by Jesus to go into the city and wait for further instruction. (Acts 9:6)
Barnabas and Saul were set apart for ministry while the church prayed. (Acts 13:2)

2)  God gives prophetic words, visions and dreams.
Jacob  saw a ladder going to heaven with angels going up and down.
(Genesis 28:10-19)
Joseph was just a teenager when God gave him visions of the future.
(Genesis 37:5)
Samuel heard God's voice and God told Samuel what was about to happen.
(1 Sam. 3:11-14)
The Apostle John received a revelation from God on the Island of Patmos.  (The Book of Revelation)
Cornelius, a gentile, was given instruction in a dream on exactly where to find Peter and to go get him. (Acts 10:1-8)


3)  God encourages and blesses those who seek him.
Abraham  entered into a covenant with God and God blessed him!
Jacob wrestled with God until he blessed him!  He was left with a  limp and a new name, Israel (Genesis 32:22-32)
Joshua was encouraged by God as He sent him forth to conquer the land! (Joshua 1:1-9)


4)  God fills people with the Holy Spirit in His presence.
Jesus' followers were in the upper room, waiting on God, in unity when they were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues. (Acts 2:4)
Saul/Paul was filled with the Holy Spirit and received his sight while Ananias prayed for him.
Cornelius, (a gentile) and his entire house were filled with the Holy Ghost and spoke in tongues. (Acts 10: 44-47).


5) God performs Miracles in His Presence.
There are many examples of Miracles taking place in God's presence. This is seen continuously in the Book of Acts during prayer meetings, when the Word of God is being preached, when the disciples lay hands on others and pray, and when people are praying on their own.  Miracles are a divine act of God.  They may come in the form of Healing, Deliverance, Salvation, Provision and Favor.


Being "HUMBLE" 
is about recognizing that 
GOD is The Creator and 
I'm a mere human being --
part of His Glorious creation. 


I'm always mindful that as wonderful as all this is, it's also an incredibly humbling experience to be in the presence of God Almighty.  Within moments, I'm aware of the fact that I'm a mere human being, part of God's very own creation, and here I am standing before My Maker!

The prophets would testify of bowing down as low as they could get. God's people greatly believed that no man could see God face to face and live.   Isaiah, shouted out,  "Woe is me! I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty." (Isaiah 6:5)  

When Moses came down from the mountain after meeting with God,  Exodus 34:29-35 tells us that his face glowed from being in the Presence of Gods Glory.  The people were so afraid that Moses ended up covering up his face with a veil.

As I get ready to sign off for tonight's Red Shoe Project,  I'm mesmerized at all that takes place during "Spiritual Digestion."  It's all about what God does in us in response to our being in His Presence and eating fresh bread.  I can sum it all up in these two words:

 We're Changed!

Good night, my friends.

Gail

Day 226

Day 226 of  The Red Shoe Project is quickly coming to an end.  Today was a jam-packed!  Pauly and I were out in RED flip flops at what seemed like the break of dawn.  Next thing I knew I was off to The Bonfire Bible study, followed by lunch with the girls, an afternoon meeting with my mentor at Starbucks,  and an evening Bible study at church on "The Vine and the Branches."   Whew!  What a day!

There are so many things I could talk about today, because God was everywhere!  But there is one thing, that stands out more than the others, that I've been pondering over and over in my mind.  I can't stop thinking about it.  It's like a pot simmering on the stove.  It's a comment I made at The Bonfire regarding our use of Spiritual Gifts.


When I was growing up, my dad was the

#1 Vending Mechanic 

in New England.  

Coffee machines -- Soda machines --  

Candy machines -- Snack machines --

Pinball machines -- Cigarette machines.  

You name it... He could fix it!  

He was The Master Mechanic of his day.
Business owners knew that if their machine
was "Out of Order"  and the local guy
couldn't get it up and running,  it was time to give Scotty a call!   Before long, the machine was operating like new.  They were back in business and pulling in profits.


Last week I overheard an interesting conversation between two people that I love dearly.  One happened to say something to the other that shocked me!  It was an ugly moment of selfishness that brought tears to my eyes and grieved my Spirit.  Because I'm in a place of leadership with this individual, before long, I found myself in a room with her, closing the door behind me for privacy.  It was time to speak words of wisdom to this dear young woman.

"But that's how I really feel!"  she said.

"You may feel that way, but the only person you should tell that to, my dear,
 is God."  I returned.

TAKE NOTE:  When you're broken -- that is,  not working correctly,  it's time to shut down and/ or shut your mouth, and call in...
The Master Mechanic.

The Holy Spirit makes 

FREE house calls  24/7.

He's the BEST when it 

comes to Divine Adjustments! 

Today, at The Bonfire, we were discussing Spiritual Gifts and the importance of being in alignment with the Holy Spirit.  The point was made that when one's attitude or life is out of sync, that's not the time to be ministering for God.   Trying to operate on His behalf, when we're  "Out of Order,"  creates an unacceptable service.  The quality is below standard.  It's tainted!  Don't get me wrong, God's not looking for perfection from us, but He's also not up for our presenting something on His behalf, that's insufficient and below His standard.  That gives Him a bad name.  Sometimes it hurts people.  The repercussions can be horrendous.

When my dad was called upon to fix coffee machines, it was because the coffee would pour out, before the cup was in place.  Sometimes the mix of the coffee and creamer was backwards - too much cream, not enough coffee.  Other times, the coffee would come out cold instead of hot.   No matter how you look at it, the results were unacceptable.  People wanted their money back!

Dont' get me wrong... if  you wait until everything is perfect, you'll never minister for God.  But that doesn't mean that we should disregard the effects of sinful behavior mixed with an attempt to do something as God's representative.  "God will not be mocked!"  (Galatians 6:7)   I warned the young woman I was counseling, "Do unto others as you would want done unto you."  We all know that what goes around, comes around.  It's only a matter of time.

Just as a point of reference, 1 Samuel, Chapter 2, tells the story of Hophni and Phinehas, the two sons of Eli the priest.  They were sacrilegious in their priestly duties and God ultimately dealt with them and their father rather harshly for it.

My friend Bonnie has made a comment several times these past few weeks.  She says that she loves the correction of the Lord.  Yes, He corrects and disciplines, but He does it ever so gently.  Why would she love that?  Because...

 When you're "Out of Order,"
there's nothing better than 

a "Divine Adjustment!"  

When it's over, everything lines up and the Spirit flows through you with ease.  It is a GOOD thing to be operational once again!  After all, who wants to be going through life with an  "Out of Order"  sign continuously around their neck?  Not me!

"Since we live by the Spirit, 

let us keep in step with the Spirit."

Galatians 5:25

Wearing RED shoes comes with a responsibility.  As I go throughout my days looking for God, pointing to God, praising God, and sometimes speaking for God, I can't be mixing God's business with things like negativity, jealousy, anger, hatred, lying, deception, back-biting, vulgarity, etc. etc. etc.   Yeah... that simply won't work!  I'm sure it would only be a matter of time before God saw fit to eliminate all the RED shoes from my closet.  Kind of like Donald Trump saying, "Your Fired!" 

It's privilege and honor to wear these RUBY REDS!

Gail