Hearing His Voice

I was thinking this weekend about how we hear the voice of God. I mean how do we really know it is God's voice we think we hear and when do we know it is only our own voice? Part of my personality is that I am a "fixer". I want everybody to be happy and I tend to think that if I do enough "behind the scenes" work I can fix things before they turn into big problems - for me or for people I love. I think I usually know when God is speaking to me but there are times when I'm just not sure. There are times when I think if I intercede in a situation that I can head off a problem. And sometimes I even think to pray about whether I should or not. And then I'm not sure if I hear an answer or if it is only me. As I was praying about this I received an answer pretty quickly. I heard God telling me that I need to spend more time in His word so that I know Him better and that His answers will come to me through scripture more clearly. Being a follower of Christ isn't merely marked by moment in time when I invited Jesus into my heart to live. There is more, so much more. I am constantly growing every day. I learn more things, more challenges come my way, and He requires me to mature more all the time. It's really quite an exciting journey. Sometimes I make mistakes along the way. Big ones. I'm so grateful that God is not only a just God but a merciful one as well. If I received what was just - I'd be in big trouble! But out of His mercy, he gives me new beginnings every day. New opportunities to hear His voice and be obedient to Him. I'm sure I'm never going to be perfect this side of heaven, but with His patience and unending mercy I am getting a little closer each day to the plan He has for me on this earth.