"God wants more than anything to talk to you. If you listen, He will speak," is what everyone told me when I expressed my frustration over getting what I thought was "the silent treatment" from God. It felt to me like everyone around me was tuned into God's radio station and I just couldn't seem to find the right wave length. I had asked Him to speak to me, sat and listened, talked to people to see if I was missing a step, but still nothing happened.

            I started second guessing and thinking that maybe I was just missing the interpretations, so I started thinking everything was a sign from God, maybe that letter that I got in the mail from this or that college was His way of telling me I should go there, maybe every random dream had some insite into my life. But I knew deep down that when He really wanted to tell me something, I would KNOW.

            One Wednesday I had been particularly praying that God would speak to me at my small group that night, but it turned out that I had to work instead. I was disappointed, but "I probably won't miss anything big anyways" was my thinking. But I was wrong...

            As I stepped out my door on the way to work it suddenly began to rain, and in the few minuets it took for me to get a jacket and an umbrella it had become a full on thunderstorm. The sky had darkened, the wind was blowing like crazy, and I could barely see through the torrents of rain. The tornado warning began to blow, and I went back inside to wait for it to pass before driving to work. After a while it calmed just enough for me to inch cautiously to work, but when I got there the place was completely empty of customers. Who wants to eat out when you're supposed to be hiding in your basement? After an hour of waiting and no one coming through the doors I was going to be sent home. Fifteen minuets till bible study started, and I still had to do my cleaning before I could leave...no way I was going to make it. Then out of the blue my co-worker says, "Well I'm still stuck here, so go ahead, I'll do your work." I thanked her and ran out the door.

                 

            The first thing was a picture of someone taking pieces of tin and painting them gold, Gold coins were words from God that someone was desiring, but instead of waiting patiently they were taking things that were not from God and pretending that they were. The second was that God wanted to encourage someone in a sense of innocence, that though the world sees it as a negative God calls us to it and wants it for us. And the third was that He wants to encourage an increased passion for missions!

            That feeling of nervous excited butterflies came to my stomach and I knew that God was speaking directly to me! All three things had been in the forefront of my mind and so heavy on my heart, and God knew it all! He knew my fears that I wasn't good enough or important enough to hear from Him, but He loved me enough to show me how important I was to Him. HE MADE A STORM JUST FOR ME! He wanted to talk to me so much that he literally blew me to the place he wanted me to be. He had plans for exactly how and when he wanted to talk to me and nothing could stand in His way.