We ask God about jobs, money, health, relationships - all things that are important areas of our lives. And because we live in a fast paced culture, is it any wonder that we expect a quick answer from God? But, what if it doesn't come quickly?

Perhaps it is because God is not merely giving out answers. He is developing a relationship.

Sometimes you might be confused about what you are doing, and sometimes weak and ineffective even if you know what you should be doing.

A person of Christ knows where they are heading, and they know what they should be doing. They are connected with others who are headed in the same direction and support one another. Even when the road is difficult and there are struggles, still the people of God move forward toward their destiny.

All of these things - the vision of a Christian, the connectivity with one another, and the power and resources to succeed - are all from Jesus Christ. Without Jesus, it won't last.

The more that we are able to mature in our relationship with God, the better able we are to hear his messages and discern his voice. The mature hear God clearly as He speaks to them through the power of the Holy Spirit. But, the immature and those who are new to the Faith hear conflicting messages from God, the world, self-centered feelings, and Satan.

In His wisdom, God has provided voices to those who are struggling to hear God clearly. He speaks through prophets, pastors, teachers, and those gifted with words of wisdom & knowledge to help Christians to reach a level of maturity so that they can hear God much more clearly.

Unfortunately, there are so many false prophets, pastors, and teachers that it might seem nearly impossible to figure out which is of God and which are not. But, Scripture provides guidance to help Christians understand which voices are from God.

Have you ever considered exactly why the Bible is so essential to the spiritual life of a Christian? Perhaps you have only thought of it as a roster of moral teachings, or a theological textbook, or a historical narrative.

Sure, it has much of that in it, but overall the Bible is a message from God on how to relate to Him. There are dozens of theories about how to relate to God, and these are expressed by the variety of religions, cults, and individual gurus of the spiritual landscape. But, there is only one place where God has described how to relate to Him, and it is the Bible.

If one wants to hear from God, then properly relating to him is essential. Is it any wonder, then, that the vast majority of those who describe themselves as spiritually vibrant and accurately hearing from God are also people who are regularly studying and absorbing the Scriptures?

There's prayer, and then there is prayer. Beyond the religious recitations, and cordial eyes-closed-and-heads-bowed times, there is a prayer that emerges from a heart that is desperate for God. It is a prayer that emerges from a heart that wants communion with the Lord.

And the prayer doesn't just happen in times of need, misery, or confusion about the future.

This prayer is a prayer that involves God in the daily passion of life, and seeks his truth always. This message provides some insight as to how this happens ...

Perhaps a first step to open our ears to better hear the will and words of God, would be to dispel a few misconceptions. First, God has not been silent since the first century - God actively speaks to his people, and in ways that urge them toward righteousness. Second, God's messages are not so easily understood by a single event or impression, but God speaks in a symphony of ways to help us to discern with clarity. Third, though we might assume that God offers his will and words to all equally, the Bible describes God as speaking more clearly to the mature and obedient, and in puzzling or obscure ways to those who do not have a full heart oriented toward him. Finally, despite a widespread notion that "leadings" and "impressions" are the primary method of God's active communication, Scripture describes much more of a community approach using teachers, prophets, and other spiritual gifts to relay his words.

There is an ethically-challenged category of self-help books that troubled me somewhat when I first encountered them. These books are about how to manipulate someone into falling in love, revealing the psychology behind why someone falls in love when their emotional needs get satisfied.

We may not realize that we don't fall in love with people, but rather we fall in love with the feelings we get when we are with them. Specifically, we fall into romantic love with people who meet our emotional needs. Should our spouse wear-out from meeting these needs - and stop - we might suddenly notice our love wear-off.

What does God want for marriage? Rather than having a person "complete you" by filling some void in your life, scripture describes Christian marital relationships as a place where the spouse "improves you" ... iron sharpening iron at an intimate level.