The Bible says God speaks to us
in a “still small voice.” But, sometimes it seems He goes to extreme measures
to cause us to hear Him, especially when we are disobeying what He already told
us to do or stop doing.
A friend shared this story with
me:
"I had a nagging issue that haunted my life
for years… alcohol. I was not an
alcoholic, but I was married to one. As
a bible believing Jesus follower, I abstained from alcohol for 8 years hoping it
would help my husband to quit drinking. However, he never quit and it infuriated him that I did not drink. I know the Bible does not state that
alcohol use is a sin, but only drunkenness. Ephesians 5:18 says. “Do not get drunk on wine but be filled
with the Holy Spirit.” But for me and my situation, I knew God wanted me to avoid all alcohol.
Most of my Christian friends drink
alcohol on occasions and do not get drunk. My husband begged me to be more
relaxed and drink again. I considered how others drink and they still love
Jesus. Finally, I caved as I reasoned that
Jesus drank wine too, right? I determined
that I would only have limited alcohol on special occasions… just a glass of wine-
like Jesus. Special occasions became
more frequent. One glass became two.
One night I went with my girlfriend to a “special
occasion” make -up party. It had been a
rough week so I jumped at the opportunity for some fun.
My friend drove me home from the party and
I realized I was supposed to go pick up my daughter from church. Usually her
dad picked her up, but he was gone, so I zipped out to get her. While I was driving her and her friend home,
I started to switch lanes but then realized there was a car next to me. And, I may have heard a faint noise -possibly
the sound of my car tapping an object.
Both of our vehicles pulled over to assess any damage- no dents, just a
dab of my car’s paint rubbed on his mirror.
Rather than take responsibility for the minimal
damage, I told him I could not be sure who was at fault, (my insurance agent taught
me this clever trick). The other driver
called the police. The cop came to my
window and asked if I had been drinking alcohol. I nervously answered “yes, a glass, well, actually
two half glasses of wine.” My mind was
reeling. “Why in the world did I drink alcohol and then drive?”
Actually, “Why in the world did I even drink alcohol?”
The DUI officer gave me a breathalyzer test
and arrested me. When he handcuffed me
and shoved me into his vehicle, I immediately heard the powerful voice of
GOD! It was not an audible voice but it
was clearly recognizable and decisive. God told me that He would not be mocked, that
He had warned me prior to quit alcohol but that I had not listened. He conveyed that I was to immediately quit
drinking alcohol and to thank the DUI officer. I praised God for the lesson and then I thanked
the officer, explaining to him what God told me about quitting all alcohol. (I wish I could say that the officer trusted
that I learned a valuable lesson and released me!) No, I was shaken to the absolute core for 21
hours until my release from jail. I
considered all the “what if’s” and am eternally grateful that no one was
hurt! I was deeply repentant, bearing
huge regret over my dreadful choices. It
would have been much easier if I had listened to the Lord’s sweet, quiet voice
earlier… then He wouldn’t have had to yell!
And yet, in my jail cell the Lord
spoke love and forgiveness over me.
In James 1:2, Paul writes, “Consider it all joy when you endure
trials.” If we listen to HIS voice
in trials, then the eyes of our hearts are enlightened to consider it pure
joy. With divine purpose, our glorious God
made beauty from ashes. I am delighted
to live 100% alcohol free and my children are better off because of it. Now I
try more diligently to listen and obey HIS sweet, quiet voice before it gets loud."
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Have you had a time when God
went to extremes to get you to listen to Him? Have you found it is
easier to listen and obey the first time you hear Him?
In the month of October I wrote a series called 31 Days of Hearing God. If you missed it, you can click on the links below.
Wow! What a beautiful testimony. I think that it's so easy to justify doing what we know is wrong for US by looking at other people and thinking, "So and so is a Christian and HE does it." But really, if it hurts OUR relationship with God, it's wrong.
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