According to some polls, as many as half of all people alive today claim to have experienced some sort of interaction with the Divine during the course of their lives. While some may scoff and suggest that such things run contrary to logic or science, true scientists readily acknowledge that there is far more to the universe than their experiments and instruments can ever hope to understand. If you've ever felt that you've had spiritual experiences with God, there are ways to confirm it.
You should first understand that there are nefarious spirits in the world, so not every supernatural encounter is necessarily from the Creator of the universe. This belief is confirmed by the major Western faith systems, which all attest to the fact that evil spirits often contact people to tempt them and sway them from the paths that they should be following.
Because of that fact, the first thing to consider during any supernatural encounter is its nature. Often times, these encounters leave those who experience them with dark thoughts or worries about their own self-worth. For people of faith, such interactions are almost never divinely oriented, for the works of God are designed to console His people and increase their love for others.
For those who lack faith, however, the reverse holds true. God will speak to such people and sear their consciences so that they repent of their sinful ways and seek His path. For those people, voices and feelings that urge them to make excuses for sinfulness are surely not from the Creator, since such excuses continue to separate those people from Him.
The scholar Ignatius long ago described another critical aspect of the discernment process. His teaching concerned the current spiritual state of the person in question. For people who are believers trying to live according to their faith's dictates, no supernatural encounter should leave them feeling cast off or separated from their Creator. For such people, God is an ever-present consolation in their lives.
The Scripture is the best benchmark for such judgments, since those encounters cannot run contrary to the Word. When someone lays claim to an encounter that contradicts those things taught by Scripture, the spirit involved was most definitely not of a divine nature. The fact is that all encounters of this kind must not contradict the Word if they are truly from the Creator of the universe.
Skeptics, of course, would have us believe that all of these claims are merely delusional rants from people who have become too invested in ancient mythologies. Those arguments fall flat for most believers, since they are never supported by objective evidence or anything remotely resembling rational consideration of those things that continue to remain unknown to science.
Regardless, even serious people of faith can face difficulty discerning such encounters. By considering their own state of belief, the results of that encounter, and its fealty to the revealed Word of God, however, any believer can better determine the likelihood of his having been contacted by God's presence.
You should first understand that there are nefarious spirits in the world, so not every supernatural encounter is necessarily from the Creator of the universe. This belief is confirmed by the major Western faith systems, which all attest to the fact that evil spirits often contact people to tempt them and sway them from the paths that they should be following.
Because of that fact, the first thing to consider during any supernatural encounter is its nature. Often times, these encounters leave those who experience them with dark thoughts or worries about their own self-worth. For people of faith, such interactions are almost never divinely oriented, for the works of God are designed to console His people and increase their love for others.
For those who lack faith, however, the reverse holds true. God will speak to such people and sear their consciences so that they repent of their sinful ways and seek His path. For those people, voices and feelings that urge them to make excuses for sinfulness are surely not from the Creator, since such excuses continue to separate those people from Him.
The scholar Ignatius long ago described another critical aspect of the discernment process. His teaching concerned the current spiritual state of the person in question. For people who are believers trying to live according to their faith's dictates, no supernatural encounter should leave them feeling cast off or separated from their Creator. For such people, God is an ever-present consolation in their lives.
The Scripture is the best benchmark for such judgments, since those encounters cannot run contrary to the Word. When someone lays claim to an encounter that contradicts those things taught by Scripture, the spirit involved was most definitely not of a divine nature. The fact is that all encounters of this kind must not contradict the Word if they are truly from the Creator of the universe.
Skeptics, of course, would have us believe that all of these claims are merely delusional rants from people who have become too invested in ancient mythologies. Those arguments fall flat for most believers, since they are never supported by objective evidence or anything remotely resembling rational consideration of those things that continue to remain unknown to science.
Regardless, even serious people of faith can face difficulty discerning such encounters. By considering their own state of belief, the results of that encounter, and its fealty to the revealed Word of God, however, any believer can better determine the likelihood of his having been contacted by God's presence.
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