Conscience and the Voice of God

By God's willing it so, we live in a material world that God has designed and created. God also gave us intelligence by which we are able to investigate this material world and to discover its complexity. But what does it all mean? The great minds of religion, philosophy and science, have all pondered this great question through the ages and we turn to them looking for answers. But why not ask the One who created it all in the first place? “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no heart has imagined, what God has prepared for those who love Him.” 1 Cor.2:9 Great minds may be helpful in pointing us in the right direction for our search, but only God knows what he has planned for each one.  But God has revealed it to us by the Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of man except his own spirit within him? So too, no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. 1 Cor.2:10 God has a vast vocabulary and can speak to us in many ways. It is the Spirit who translates for us, enabling us to understand the message God is speaking to us.  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. And 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. 1Cor.2:12 The more we listen the better we become at hearing and understanding what God is saying to us personally. But if we are not tuned in (prayer of contemplation) we are on our own, trying to make sense of it all. The natural man 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 judges all things, but he himself is not subject to anyone’s judgment. “For who has known the mind of the Lord, so as to instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Christ. 1 Cor. 2:14 Speak Lord, your servant is listening.

	Tuning In The Vocabulary of God When and Ways God Speaks
Scripture		Church Teaching	Sacraments
Sense of the Faithful		Inner Peace / Unrest	Prayer / Insight
Devotional Prayer		Spiritual Direction	Lives of Saints
Spiritual Reading		Faith Sharing	True Prophets
Manifestations of Charity		Spiritual Gifts	All Creation

Bishop Robert Barron has an interesting talk on the subject of Hearing God's Voice and the role of conscience.  [ ... Link ... ]