I cannot recall the first time I heard God’s voice, just as no one ever remembers the moment of their birth. At birth, the cognitive abilities that will increase as we age are primitive, sufficient only to support life. Yet, within moments, we are capable of reacting to external stimuli; we recognize a loving embrace, we hear a soothing voice and we smile. Instinctively we know love even though we have no true understanding of its meaning. Comprehension and understanding are beyond the newness of our minds, beyond our capacity to know. It is a mystery, a truth so big it cannot be exhausted in the knowing.

Unlike God, we are temporal creatures, limited by space and time, with human weaknesses and limitations. Our eyes are limited to seeing only visible light, a small portion of the electromagnetic spectrum; for there is far more that we cannot see than what we do see. Our ears are capable of hearing sound between 20-20,000 Hz although generally we hear a much smaller range (1000-5000 Hz.) Sounds beyond 20,000 Hz exist, we just cannot hear them.

What all this means is that if we are to hear God’s voice we must overcome or set aside our innate human limitations and tune ourselves to His frequency and His light. When we were born we felt loved without understanding. We did not try to analyze or intellectualize what we felt because we had no means to do so, just as we had neither the desire nor compulsion to go beyond the sense of well-being and nurturing love that surrounded us. We just felt loved and it was a good feeling.

So it is with God. In our humanity, our physical bodies, we cannot hear or see God but through our spirituality, our souls, we can reach out and hear His voice.

While I cannot recall when God first began to speak to me, nor the second, third, or nth occasion, I can remember when I first became receptive to listening to what He had to say. And in retrospect I have firm memories of moments when I chose to follow a certain path simply because I ‘heard’ His voice whispering within my soul.

Not too long ago I was asked to develop a timeline of my life. Wide latitude was given to its form. It could be a simple line marked with tics or dots to denote important events or it could be a meandering line, full of curves and course corrections. What came to mind for me was a room filled with an endless number of colored balls, each touching a myriad of other balls. I saw my life as a journey through that room, neither straight nor level, coming in contact with so many, every touch influencing my choices and each having an impact on the path I would ultimately follow. At times, the going was easy, like when I saw myself swimming above the sea of balls. When I sank below the surface, the way was slow and tedious.

God speaks to us in those moments when we need a gentle nudge, a soft caress, a tender touch. He speaks in our imagination, through circumstances, by others, and sometimes He speaks within our soul. When He does it is usually best to shut up and listen.