comments:
Great question! I think we have to be very careful about attributing an inner voice to God's voice. I do believe the Spirit leads and guides us, but we have to be careful not to speak for God. I've done similar things that you described in your post, so I relate. But since the Holy Spirit opens our eyes to what His word says, we can confidently know God is speaking to us if he is allowing us to remember his word. John 14:26: But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you. Psalm 119:18: Open my eyes, that I may beholdWonderful things from Your law. There's a great book called, "Decision Making and the Will of God," by Gary Friesen and he addresses some of these things. A core principle when making any decision is to look at what the bible teaches on that subject. If it's a gray area not addressed in the bible, then are there biblical principles to follow? Beyond that, we are free to make our own choices. We should pray and ask for discernment, of course. Again, I'm not saying the Spirit doesn't speak in a quiet inner voice about things in our lives, but we still have to be careful not to speak for him, such as "God told me..." like a prophet would. But I think it's reasonable to sense the Spirit guiding you in a certain way. There was a time years ago when I found out a family friend was homeless and depressed. My husband had suggested he could live with us before that even happened, and I did not want that and was adamantly opposed (mostly because I didn't want another person in the home). But this time, God brought to mind 1 john 3:17: "But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him?" I felt such conviction that I knew God was telling me to let him live with us. So, it was a combination of God bringing to mind a verse and heavy conviction and guiding from the Spirit.