Cell Phone in our Hearts

God’s Call Is Already in Your Heart

Dreams,   Visions,   Word-Thoughts,   and the Spiritual “Cellphone” Within Us

For most of my life,

I thought communicating with God required something spectacular.

A voice booming from heaven would have been helpful.

A burning bush would certainly have gotten my attention.

I probably would have settled for an angel appearing at the foot of my bed holding a clipboard that said:

“Bill,      here are today's instructions.”

Instead,

I eventually came to believe that God had already provided the connection.

He put it in my heart.

Paul tells us in Galatians 4:6:

“God sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts.”

And the prophet Joel gives us an extraordinary picture of what happens when God pours out His Spirit:

“Your sons and your daughters will prophesy.”

“Your old men will dream dreams.”

“Your young men will see visions.”

Those scriptures gave me a modern way of thinking about Centering Prayer:

God invented the cellphone long before we did.

No monthly bill.

No roaming charges.

No dead zones.

No busy signals.

No answering machine.

And best of all:

no spam.

I don't even have to remember where I left it.

The connection is already in my heart.

No,   there Is Not a Samsung Behind My Sternum

Of course,

I do not mean that God literally installed a Samsung Galaxy somewhere behind my breastbone.

If your cardiologist finds one during an X-ray,

you and I have an entirely different problem to discuss.

The cellphone is simply a metaphor.

It is my way of picturing something much more profound:

the personal relationship between God's children,      and the Holy Spirit dwelling within them.

The connection is spiritual.

The receiver is the heart.

And Centering Prayer,

for me,

is learning to answer the call.

God Has More Than One Way to Communicate

Joel tells us about:

dreams,

visions,

prophecy,

and the pouring out of God's Spirit.

Joseph in Genesis receives dreams that reveal something about his future.

The New Testament Joseph receives God's direction through a dream at one of the most important moments of his life.

He is struggling over what to do about Mary.

Then an angel appears to him in a dream and tells him:

“Don't be afraid.”

That dream changes the direction of his life.

So Scripture itself tells us that God is not limited to one method of communication.

Sometimes the message may come as a dream.

Sometimes a vision.

Sometimes a calling impressed upon the heart.

Sometimes,

in my own experience,

as what I call a:

word-thought.

What Is a Word-Thought?

A word-thought is not something I hear through my physical ears.

It is an inward word,

phrase,

or idea

that appears clearly within my mind.

It may arrive quietly.

It may be very brief.

Sometimes it is so gentle that it would be easy to dismiss.

That was certainly true for me.

For seventy years,

I became extremely skilled at dismissing anything spiritual.

If ignoring God had been an Olympic event,

I might have made the team.

Looking backward now,

I believe there were many times when God was calling me

and I simply wasn't paying attention.

My spiritual phone wasn't broken.

I just wasn't answering it.

And unfortunately,

there was no message appearing across my heart saying:

“You have 14,673 unread messages from the Holy Spirit.”

The Line Was Always There

When I finally began practicing Centering Prayer consistently,

something changed.

Not because God suddenly moved closer to me.

I began paying attention.

I became still.

I listened.

I surrendered my plans.

And I began asking:

“Jesus,      how may I serve You today?”

Then I waited.

That simple practice completely changed my understanding of prayer.

Instead of spending all my time transmitting,

I finally started receiving.

For most of my life,

my prayer line apparently operated in one direction.

Bill talked.

God listened.

Then Bill talked some more.

Centering Prayer taught me that friendship works considerably better when both sides get a turn.

This Is a Service Line

I sometimes imagine the Holy Spirit's connection as a dedicated line.

But let's be clear about what this spiritual cellphone does not provide.

There is no football package.

No Netflix.

No video games.

No breaking-news alerts.

No coupon notifications.

No advertisement saying:

“God noticed you were thinking about forgiveness.      Here are twelve products you may also enjoy.”

This isn't an entertainment line.

It is about:

relationship,

love,

obedience,

and:

The purpose is not to make our spiritual lives more exciting.

The purpose is to help us become available to Christ.

Everyone May Receive a Different Assignment

I sometimes picture Christ's Kingdom as an enormous coordinated mission.

Millions of people may be serving,

but not everyone receives the same assignment.

One person may be called to comfort someone who is grieving.

Another may feed someone who is hungry.

Someone else may:

teach,

heal,

forgive,

create,

give,

or simply sit beside someone who desperately needs a friend.

Different assignments.

Different gifts.

Different people.

One Lord.

One Spirit.

One Kingdom.

That is beautiful to me.

God does not need every Christian doing exactly the same thing.

The Body of Christ already has enough duplication without seven billion people all trying to become the right hand.

Stop Assuming God’s Plan Is Your Plan

This is why Centering Prayer has become so important to me.

If I want to serve Christ,

I need to stop assuming that whatever Bill planned this morning automatically received heavenly approval.

I must become still enough to surrender my agenda and ask:

“Jesus,      how may I serve You today?”

Then I listen.

Sometimes the answer may involve something small.

Call someone.

Encourage someone.

Forgive someone.

Help someone.

Sometimes the calling may seem much larger.

And that is where my own story became very uncomfortable.

“Unite All of My Children”

One of the first word-thoughts that became firmly planted in my mind was:

“Unite all of My children.”

My immediate response was approximately:

“You've got the wrong number.”

Remember,

I was only beginning this journey.

I had spent most of my life as an agnostic.

I was just starting to believe that God might actually be communicating with me,

and suddenly I believed I had received an assignment that sounded completely impossible.

My scientific mind immediately began cross-examination.

Was this God?

Was this imagination?

Was my ego trying to climb back into the driver's seat wearing a halo?

I didn't know.

So I kept listening.

Then the Assignment Got Bigger

Then came another persistent word-thought:

“Save My children in China.”

That did not make the situation seem more reasonable.

Quite the opposite.

I felt like a private in the army,      being handed a map of an entire continent and told:

“Here's your section.”

I had no idea what that calling meant.

I had no idea what part I could possibly play.

And eventually,

that taught me something very important:

a calling does not necessarily include the entire plan.

God may give us a direction

without giving us every mile marker between here and there.

Apparently the heavenly navigation system occasionally says:

“Proceed as directed.”

And then expects us to trust the Driver.

Joseph Wasn’t Given the Road Map Either

The Joseph of Genesis helps me understand this.

As a young man,

Joseph dreamed about sheaves bowing before his sheaf,

and then about the sun,

moon,

and eleven stars bowing before him.

What Joseph did not receive was a detailed itinerary saying:

First,

your brothers will throw you into a pit.

Then you'll be sold into slavery.

Then you'll be falsely accused.

Then prison.

Then Pharaoh.

Then famine.

eventually everything will make sense.

Joseph received the dream.

God knew the route.

Joseph didn't.

That distinction has become extremely important to me.

If I believe God has placed something enormous upon my heart,

I do not have to pretend that I understand how it will happen.

My responsibility is not to become God.

My responsibility is to serve God.

The Other Joseph Had to Trust Too

The Joseph in the New Testament faced an entirely different crisis.

Mary was pregnant.

Joseph knew the child was not his.

He was preparing to quietly end the relationship.

Then an angel appeared to him in a dream and told him:

“Don't be afraid.”

Take Mary as your wife.

The child is of the Holy Spirit.

Name Him Jesus.

That dream changed everything.

Joseph listened.

Joseph trusted.

Joseph obeyed.

And because he obeyed,

he became part of God's plan in a way he could never have designed himself.

Again,

the pattern appears:

God communicates.

His child listens.

His child trusts.

His child obeys.

Sometimes God May Need the Visual Aids

Later in my own journey,

I began experiencing what I interpreted as visions.

At a Centering Prayer retreat,

I once heard a speaker jokingly describe visions as something God might use for the:

“remedial learners.”

You know      —

the stubborn students who require larger print,

additional examples,

and perhaps a diagram.

I immediately felt represented.

There is an old story about a farmer whose mule refused to move.

The farmer picked up a two-by-four

and gave the mule a whack on his head.

His horrified friend asked:

“Why did you do that?”

The farmer replied:

“First,      I have to get his attention.”

Sometimes I wonder whether,

after seventy years of watching me ignore subtle spiritual nudges,

God looked at me and thought:

“We're going to need the visual aids for this boy.”

Experiences I Couldn’t Forget

I later experienced several vivid mental images that I interpreted spiritually.

One involved an enormous dark cloud moving along the expressway near my church.

On another occasion,

I perceived the same cloud extending six tube-like forms toward the church door.

Those experiences were unforgettable to me.

They were also frightening.

I did not immediately announce:

“Wonderful!      I completely understand all of this.”

Quite the opposite.

I wondered whether I should stop listening altogether.

I Needed People I Could Trust

Thankfully,

I was not trying to understand everything by myself.

Two pastors whom I trusted listened privately as I described what I was experiencing.

They did not ridicule me.

They did not panic.

They gave me room to continue:

praying,

studying Scripture,

practicing Centering Prayer,

and discerning.

That was enormously important.

Later,

when I encountered Paul's discussion of the gift of:

“discerning of spirits”

in 1 Corinthians 12,

I began viewing my experiences through what I understood as a biblical spiritual framework.

That is my testimony.

But it is important that I say this clearly:

your experience will not look like mine.

God Does Not Need Seven Billion Bills

Joel does not say every person receives the same:

dream,

vision,

calling,

or spiritual gift.

Paul specifically teaches that different gifts are distributed to different people.

Your journey with God does not need to look like mine.

That's actually part of the beauty of it.

God does not need seven billion copies of Bill Bledsoe.

One is already quite enough.

Some days,

possibly more than enough.

God calls each of His children according to His purposes.

Your calling may seem enormous.

Or it may appear wonderfully ordinary.

Never confuse   ordinary   with   unimportant.

God’s Kingdom Is Built Through Small Acts Too

Perhaps God puts one frightened person on your heart.

You call them.

Perhaps He reminds you of someone you need to forgive.

You forgive.

Perhaps you feel led to visit a lonely neighbor.

You go.

Perhaps a struggling child needs encouragement.

You encourage.

Those actions may never make the news.

No television crew will appear.

There probably will not be a headline saying:

“LOCAL CHRISTIAN PERFORMS ACT OF KINDNESS;      WORLD CONTINUES ROTATING.”

But in God's Kingdom,

that simple act of obedience may matter enormously.

We may never know everything God accomplishes through one small:

“Yes,      Lord.”

The Question Is Not,   “Will I Get Visions?”

The important question isn't:

“Will God give me visions?”

It isn't:

“Will I receive spectacular spiritual gifts?”

And it certainly isn't:

“Will my spiritual cellphone get the deluxe package?”

The question is much simpler:

“Am I willing to answer?”

And:

“Am I willing to serve?”

Centering Prayer begins there.

Become still before God.

Surrender your will.

Ask Jesus:

“How may I serve You today?”

Then:

listen,

discern,

trust,

and obey.

Discernment Eliminates the Crank Calls

Listening does not mean believing every thought that enters our minds.

My mind is perfectly capable of generating plenty of material without divine assistance.

So I listen      —

but I also discern.

I ask:

Does this lead toward God's unconditional love?

Does it agree with the character and teachings of Jesus?

Does it call me toward humility and service rather than ego and self-glorification?

Does it produce the fruit of the Spirit?

Love?

Joy?

Peace?

Patience?

Kindness?

Goodness?

Faithfulness?

Gentleness?

Self-control?

If what I believe I am hearing leads away from Christ's character,

I need to stop and examine it carefully.

The Holy Spirit is not going to spend thousands of years teaching unconditional love

and then suddenly send me a message saying:

“New policy:      Revenge is now acceptable.”

Discernment matters.

You Do Not Need the Whole Route

This is another lesson Joseph taught me.

You don't need the entire route.

Joseph didn't.

You don't need all the resources.

God does.

You don't have to know what God is asking someone else to do.

That's between God and them.

You only need to ask:

“What are You asking me to do?”

Then take the next faithful step.

That is much easier than trying to run the Kingdom.

I tried running my own little kingdom for seventy years.

The management reviews were mixed.

Your Relationship With God Is Personal

Your relationship with the Holy Spirit is deeply personal.

No one else has your exact calling.

No one else has your exact life.

No one else has your exact gifts.

You are learning to:

know God,

love God,

listen to God,

trust God,

and serve God.

Centering Prayer provides the quiet space where that relationship can grow.

And relationships take time.

Trust grows.

Discernment grows.

Love grows.

Faith grows.

One quiet morning at a time.

I Thought I Had to Understand Everything First

For seventy years,

I believed I needed to understand everything

before I could believe anything.

Centering Prayer turned that around.

Today,

I believe God already knows what I need.

My job is not to know everything God knows.

That would be a rather ambitious morning assignment.

My job is to:

know Him,

love Him,

listen to Him,

trust Him,

and:

serve Him.

Before Your Other Phone Starts Ringing

So tomorrow morning,

before the television starts talking,

before the computer begins demanding passwords,

before the emails arrive,

and before your regular cellphone begins announcing everything the rest of the world thinks is urgently important,

spend some quiet time with the Spirit whom Scripture says God has placed in your heart.

You do not need a burning bush.

You do not need an angel with a clipboard.

You do not need a booming voice from the sky.

Simply ask:

“Jesus,      how may I serve You today?”

Then become still.

Listen.

Discern.

Trust.

And when you become convinced that Christ is calling you toward His love and service,

obey.

Your journey will not be mine.

It shouldn't be.

Your spiritual phone may never receive the same messages as mine.

That's fine.

The important thing is that you answer the line God has given you.

Because perhaps the Holy Spirit has been calling for much longer than we realize.

The connection may already be there.

The Spirit of His Son is already in our hearts.

So the real question is not:

“Does God have my number?”

The real question is:

“Am I finally willing to answer?”

Questions for prayer:
          What do these passages reveal about God?
          What response does it ask of me?
          Is the impression I receive consistent with the character and teaching of Jesus?
          What loving and faithful action should follow?

Daily prayer:

How may I serve You this day?”