1 Corinthians 2:6-14 Wisdom From the Spirit
We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. No, we speak of God’s secret wisdom, a wisdom that has been hidden and that God hastened for our glory before time began. None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. However, as it is written: “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for this who live him” but God has revealed it to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man’s spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man’s judgement: ‘For who has known the mind of the Lord that he man instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.
Listening Prayer is something that I was not familiar with one bit prior to the race. To be completely honest with you, I had never even heard of it before training camp for the Race. It has been something I have grown in so much in the last month and a half since starting this journey, and I cannot wait to continue to grow in it through this next year.
Listening Prayer involves silencing all earthly distractions and thoughts and sitting in the presence of The Lord. Learning to just sit with Him and hear what He has to say. I initially thought that in order to hear Him, I had to sit and close my eyes and try to hear a whisper. I have realized that hearing God’s voice and seeing His work at hand in my life is so much more than that. I would not be on this mission trip had I not listened to Him. Simply saying “yes” to devoting a year of my life to Him is hearing His voice. All of the times that I have gone up the North Shore in Minnesota to go on a hike and take photographs, I admire His beautiful creation. Getting outside and being in God’s creation is where I hear Him speak to me most. Since realizing that, I have such a newfound perspective on picking up my camera and using it for HIS glory, not mine. He loves it so much seeing me use the talents He has given me for His Kingdom. Being in Africa and allowing the Lord to use my talents has been such a precious thing for me, I see the talents He has given to me to help those around me. Month 1 in Cote d’Ivoire, I was walking the village streets and I approached a little boy about 2 years old to take a photograph of him. Immediately after I took it, tears started to fill my eyes. I looked at the photo and at that moment I wondered if showing him that photo may be the first time this precious child of God has seen himself. It was The Lord showing me that my talents do matter, and they can be used for His greater purpose. It broke my heart to think it may be one of the first and only photos he’s seen of himself but gave me so much joy that I could let him see his beautiful self that was made for a specific plan and purpose in God’s image.
This month in Ghana, we have practiced listening prayer while going out and evangelizing. Before we start walking the streets on our own, we sit with God and ask if there is anything He wants to show us. This was something very new for me, and I will get things that I think are so random and unrelatable to me at times. We say things that the Lord speaks to us in our team circle, and this last time I got an image of a red paintbrush. I thought, “God, there’s no way I am going to find a paintbrush at these stores but I’ll say it anyway.” And so we went out in the village and spoke with people that we felt God wanted us to talk to, and I was talking with my teammate Hannah and said, “Hannah I just feels it is so weird that The Lord gave me an image of a paintbrush, it just seems too random to come across.” As I spoke those words to her, we were approaching a man at a workbench and before she said anything she picks up a red paintbrush from the table. God does some crazy cool things, and at that moment I knew it wasn’t my thoughts running all over the place it was Him speaking to me. At that moment, I knew it was His way of telling me to stop doubting Him and to put my full trust in Him. None of this half-hearted lukewarm commitment, He wants me all in.
Diving deeper into my relationship with the Lord is a daily work in progress and realizing the ways He speaks to me is a big part of it. It doesn’t need to be me sitting still sitting in a room to hear His voice, it can be me playing simply on this playground we call His creation admiring its beauty. It’s where I hear Him most and where my heart is most happy. Realizing this alone has been a huge stepping stone and I can’t wait to see all of the other ways He reveals Himself to me this year.
Blessings,
Adriana
