…gives you an idea of what is in the vicinity.
Have you ever spent time with a serious birder? You would be walking down a path on a sunny day, birds chirping in the background and they will stop dead in their tracks, tilt an ear and go: “That’s a Lesser Known Blue Crested, Yellow Legged Warbler!” They know these sounds because they live in them. Where I hear chirps, they hear language!
Its true in most environments. We were designed to recognise the signs. Speak to someone that grew up in some dodgy areas in the midcity and they will move around areas instinctively, because they know the signs of trouble (where the birder, poor chap, will be mugged and left for dead!)
Hunters also know signs. They smells and markings, the calls and noises of the bush. If a hunter is in a tree stand, and hears what sounds like a deer, right behind them… its a squirel. And if you are sitting around a camp fire in the African bush, and you hear a lion… its probably an Ostrich (because, for some reason, they sound more like our minds imagine a lion to sound like)
We were designed to learn and know signs. Its the difference between getting food and becoming food. It’s a Godly design, re-inforced by thousands of years of survival!
My awesome wife sent me this short video clip, and it completely bowled me over. Right in the beginning of the bible, God already taught us how to recognize if the devil is near. And now that I re-read Chapter 3 of Genesis, I cannot unsee it. It’s like the KFC logo. (It was always a Picture Colonel Sanders with his bow tie, but since my son pointed it out to me, it now looks like a big head on a very smal stick man!)
In Genesis 3, God teaches: The Devil will come, he will make this sound. That is how you know He is near… Watch what happens if you do not heed the signs! – I can almost hear David Attenborough narating…
“…Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”
(Genesis 3:1 NIV)
It’s his bloody trademark! Sowing doubt and telling lies so close to the truth that you have to think twice… but guaranteed, the Devil is near when your calling is directly questioned!
When God gives you a purpose, there is no doubt in your mind… you will follow that direction until the end of time. The Devil can’t have that… so he has to get crafty. He Doesn’t contradict God… Hashtag #JustAsking … Did God really say…? Wow that’s cool! but… surely He doesn’t expect you to do all that, it’s dangerous/difficult/uncomfortable God is a God of love/peace/comfort… it says so in the bible… doesn’t it?
It’s the Ostrich call that sounds like a Lion… Did God really say?
I mean this is difficult, God Said “…For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future..” in Jeremiah 20-something verse something… Surely the problems you are facing now are God’s way of telling you to go back, that you are on the wrong path, that you are headed for disaster. erm… no… there is more to the story than a verse on a coffee mug!
“LION LION LION!!!” no… its just a big bird flapping around. its not un-dangerous… but its not lion dangerous…
Did God really say…
The sign that God taught is in the third book of the bible. The serpent will come and make this noise. Oppose it viciously, otherwise it will devour you! Crush his head, and teach your children to crush his head. (Not snakes, but the snake that is the devil. When he comes, oppose him with excessive force!)
“Did God really say” – Warning Warning!
But here is the good news…
You can test the word of God. Just like the test for any prophetic word, 1 Corinthians 14:3 requires that the word is:
- to encourage people,
- to build them up, and
- to bring them comfort.
Will your purpose, your calling, produce the Fruit of the Spirit or not? God also gave us this sign as a test.
“For we have the living Word of God, which is full of energy, like a two-mouthed sword. It will even penetrate to the very core of our being where soul and spirit, bone and marrow meet! It interprets and reveals the true thoughts and secret motives of our hearts.”
(Hebrews 4:12)
If we live in the City, we will understand City signs. If we live in the Bush, we will understand Bush signs… If we live in Christ, and in God’s word… we will learn to understand the Signs that Matter!
Be Blessed!
