I really want to be a good communicator. I think it’s
important. I teach students during Awana (A Wednesday Night event for students
6th and under) teach our youth group Sunday School on Sunday
Mornings, I teach our youth group during Sunday Evenings, I preach about once
every four months, and I coach wrestling. Those are the direct ways I
communicate to others but I also communicate indirectly. In fact, my com101
professor Rich Noble, taught us that most of our communication is non-verbal
(how we act: like smiling, the tone of your voice, and stuff like that). I also
communicate in how I live my life. And you do too!
You communicate directly (through your words) and indirectly
(through your actions) every moment of every day, even when you are a sleep
(Psychoanalysis anyone? Haha).
All of this “communicating” talk comes from a study I am
doing with a few local pastors. We took an assessment that evaluated our
motivation. You know like why I do what I do? This study isn’t to help us solve
our deep psychological issues but certainty can be a starting point in figuring
out why certain people are motivated to do certain things. The test gives you
certain results and correlates them with colors. You are a complex person and
so am I; therefore we have a blend of motivations but this test told us which
motivational strategy we would most likely employ. The colors are red, blue,
and green.
“Red people” tend to be more vision oriented. We do things
and communicate to the end that people are moving in a certain direction. They
want to see people understand a concept and they see that as a “win.” “Blue people” tend to be more people oriented.
They are motivated by wanting people to be in harmony and see growth on a
personal level. “Green people” tend to be more detailed-oriented. These are
your accountants and treasurers. They are motivated not by people or the vision
but my making sure all the ducks are in a row and that all the possibilities
have been considered before moving on. There is also the “hub.” These are
people that scored similar scores in red, blue, and green. They tend to be
motivated by all three factors and hearing input from all angles and P.O.V.
Which color am I? What do you think? Which color are you?
What do you think? Of course, all this talk about colors and motivation must
led us somewhere and to someone. We need to know individuals motivational
behaviors in a deeper way for a variety of reasons. 1) They can help us see the
blind spots we are missing. Isn’t that true? A person that is motivated by
vision and direction could easily overlook the practical needs that a detailed
oriented person could see. 2) They help
us see the full picture of God. All people were created in the image in
likeness of God. That’s the coolest thing ever, i.mo. When we hang out with
people that aren’t like us we get to see more of what God is like through these
individuals. 3) We can communicate well to them! Saint Paul told the Church in
Corinth that “he has become all things for all people, so that some might be
saved.” He is telling us that the Gospel doesn’t change but how he needed to
present it to certain individuals needed to in order for them to hear it.
The wonderful thing about God is he already knows how to
communicate. In fact, he is the best communicator ever. I mean He did create
it, after all. So, I am interested in
how God communicates to us. This list is not all the ways that God can speak to
us. I believe he can use any way that he pleases. Who am I to limit what God
can do? I have just notice a few that have to do with the word “Word.”
1) We can speak God’s word
Saint James, the half-brother of our Lord Jesus, wrote a
letter in the Scriptures. He talks about how good and evil can both come from
your tongue. He says it shouldn’t be but it does. We have the power to speak
life into other people. How empowering is it to receive an encouraging word
from another person when you are having a crappy day? We can also speak
revelation. We can see things and have experienced things that others haven’t.
We have the ability to speak truth into a situation trusting that God will use
it to strengthen that individual. It is important to remember which “color” you
are talking to when you speak these words of truth. For it is our job to communicate well to the
other based on how they can receive it best.
2) We can read God’s word
Many times in my life I don’t have the words to say. But I
know that God has written (not literally but through chosen individuals) in the
collection of books we call the Bible. Need an encouragement for a time of
despair? There’s a verse for that. Need the words to praise God? There’s a
verse for that. Need a challenge in times of pride? There’s a verse for
that.
The wonderful thing about God’s written word is you don’t
need a Master’s in Biblical studies to read it. Studying about the Bible and
reading commentaries are incredibly helpful to understand the background of the
historical situation but we can trust that God can also speak to us through his
Spirit into his written Word.
3) We can remember God’s word
One thing (among many) that I have appreciated about the
Alliance (the demo I am serving) is this idea of remembering. What I grew up
calling “Sacraments” they call “Ordinances.” This is referring to Holy Baptism
and Holy Communion. The idea of an
ordinance is to perform a certain act out of obedience to the One who has
commanded it and out of remembrance of Him. So, they remember Jesus’ death and
resurrection through Baptism (dying of one’s sins as they are washed away) and
through the elements of bread and wine (replaced by grape juice) remind us that
Jesus body and blood was broken and shed for us.
God’s word is Jesus.
In fact that is what Saint John calls him to begin his Gospel. What the Greeks
called “logos” The way, the understanding of the universe, the way things work:
John calls Jesus that. And is translated into our Bibles as “Word.” He shocks
the Greek world when he says, “the Word (I.E. this Jesus who has always been
and always will be, the way we understand the universe) became flesh and dwelt
among us.
God speaks to us through Jesus. Through his birth, life,
death, and resurrection. Jesus spoke parables (stories about people who
embraced this “heavenly mindset.”) His life, his sacrifice, his example, his
power over demons and death itself, is a testimony of God speaking to us.
4) We can experience God’s word
The God who spoke
many years ago through creating the earth, who spoke to us through Jesus, who
speaks to us through the Scriptures, speaks to us today. His Spirit is alive
and draws us to Himself. The Father who desires more than anything an intimate
relationship with His children chooses to do so in the present age through the
Spirit of Jesus that lives in and among God’s chosen people.
We can hear him speak to us. Through dreams. Through
visions. Through the whispers of his voice.
This is where many Christians tend to check out because it is unsafe and
uncontrollable but where we should want to sign-up! It takes faith to listen
and trust that the God who knows you best will speak to you.
I have encountered God speak to me through all of these
ways. Sometimes it is more evident than other times but as I learn to hear from
Him I realize it’s a process. There are certain ways in different seasons of my
life that I have heard God speak in different ways. Currently, I am seeing certain words jump off
the pages of Scripture as I follow the church calendar through the Bible
readings.
The Spirit and the Word always work together. May we not have a limited view of the “Word
of God.” For the Word is Jesus himself. The Father, who sent his Son, sends his
Spirit to reveal all truth in and through us and for us, who believe in the One
and Only Triune God. This is awesome. And to this regard, I proclaim, “HECK
YEA!” Come Lord Jesus, Come.
