Scripture
“God’s glory is on tour in the skies,
God-craft on exhibit across the horizon.
Madame Day holds classes every morning,
Professor Night lectures each evening.
Their words aren’t heard,
Their voices aren’t recorded,
But their silence fills the earth:
Unspoken truth is spoken everywhere.”
PSALM 19:1-4 (MSG)
“For you will go out with joy
And be led in peace;
The mountains and the hills will break into shouts of joy before you,
And all the trees of the field will clap their hands.”
ISAIAH 55:12
Quotes/Color
“The handiwork of the Creator can speak to us and teach us if we listen.”
Richard Foster
“God speaks in the language you know best – not through your ears, but through your circumstances.”
Oswald Chambers
“God doesn’t talk to me in an audible voice because God isn’t a human being: He’s God. That makes sense to me, because human beings are limited and God isn’t limited at all. He can communicate to us in any way He wants to anytime He wants to.”
Bob Goff
Context
My favorite class I ever took in college was called “Nonverbal Communication.” A welcomed change from the rigidity of my accounting courses, Nonverbal Comm is the study of all human communication, every piece of it, besides the words you actually speak.
It is what it sounds like. Nonverbal. Communication. We communicate, all of us, far far more than the words we can say.
- “I’m glad to be with you” – communicated by a genuine smile
- “I want to talk to you and I am not concerned with anyone else” – communicated by shoulders facing directly forward toward the recipient (not at an angle inviting someone else to the conversation or giving the opportunity to look elsewhere for conversation)
- “I would rather be somewhere else” – feet are facing the door
- “I am uncomfortable or nervous” – self-touch of the neck, face or hair
One of the more interesting things I learned in this class… It is said that as much as 90% of the communication we transmit in person to person interactions would be classified as “nonverbal.” Think more about that. 90%.
From the intonation of your voice, to the tempo of your speech, your posture, your facial expressions (dilated or undilated pupils, where the eyes are looking, the eyebrows, the nostrils flaring/relaxing), shoulder position, crossed or uncrossed legs, a nervous tapping of the fingers, crossed arms or splayed legs. All things you don’t think about in the slightest, yet they comprise of 90% or more of what you’re actually communicating to others. So much is communicated by these things, all subconsciously and involuntarily. So interesting. That is why I loved this class… Each one of us is always communicating, whether we know it or not. No exceptions. And it just so happens that a great majority of that communication, the nonverbal portion, often goes unnoticed and unappreciated.
Application
So here is a question…
What if, like us, 90% of God’s communication to you and I is “nonverbal?” I am not saying it is or it’s not… But the Bible undoubtedly references God’s creation speaking to us many different times. Right? What if God is trying to teach you, engage with you, walk with you and communicate with you at all times instead of just when you opened up your Bible?
A couple ways for me to try to convince you to look for God’s Nonverbal Communication:
- The Genesis Creation Story – Let’s take Genesis as an example, the creation story. When God spoke creation into existence, what “language” did he say it in? When He first spoke “Let there be light,” did he say it in English? When He first spoke, “Let the earth produce all kinds of plants,” did he say it in… Hebrew? Maybe Latin?
My argument is that I don’t quite know. But I don’t think it was in any of those human languages, per say. And, because of that, it seems to me that it is possible that God’s native “language” might not actually consist of an alphabet at all… It may not consist of letters or numbers as we know it. His language might be different than any of ours entirely.
Genesis shows us that God’s “language” may in fact be His creation. God spoke into creation all of existence. “Let there be light.” And there was light. Created out of nothing. And that creation, not through letters and verbiage but through His design, teaches us about God.
Now, I am treading on groovy territory right now, I realize that… And don’t want you to misinterpret this suggestion and go see what God is trying to tell you through the coupon on the back of your Cinnamon Toast Crunch. Or to think, “That’s right, this is grounds for me to leave behind the actual Word of God left for us, The Bible.” That is in my eyes a dramatic overcorrection. And would be a mistake.
But what I am saying is this… Do you think you could learn a bit from God and hear a bit from God by observing his creation? Could you allow God to speak into your life not just through study of His Scripture, but also, once you’ve established a strong foundation of biblical knowledge, through relationships, creation, nature, your job, your involvements and your interests?
If you put God in a box and only look for direct verbal communication to you in plain English, you limit yourself a great deal. You prevent God from speaking to you through your circumstances and through His creation, very possibly His “native language.”
- Nonverbal Communication brings more meaning to Verbal Communication – Verbal communication is just fine. It is encouraging. And it certainly serves a purpose. But there is certainly a difference between (1) words alone and (2) words accompanied by nonverbal communication.
There are some things that an encouraging touch or look can communicate that words just can’t on their own.
God leaves us His Word. But don’t forget that He also left us His creation that He described as “very good.”
Something to Chew On:
- Do you feel “out of touch” with God and feel like you haven’t heard from Him in a while? To combat this, have you considered what God is communicating to you “nonverbally”, through your circumstances and through His creation? Reflect on this.
- How familiar are you with the “language of God,” communication through circumstances and creation? Is it a foreign language to you and totally indecipherable? Or are you fluent, eager to interpret it as it comes up in real time?
GreatValue Proverb:
God is speaking to you more than you think. You’re listening to God less than you think.