I'm not sure which of these events came first, but they were both very early in my Christian walk.

Remember, I was reading tons of Bible every day. I say this because I firmly believe that God is not going to waste his breath speaking to someone who won't even read his written words. I used to read the Bible out loud after praying, "Lord, tune me like a tuning fork so that I vibrate to your frequency, so that I hear your words." I wanted to be 'in tune' with my Saviour.

One night, I determined to seek the Lord until I found him. (Jeremiah 29:13) I knew that the Song of Solomon was about the intimate relationship between God and the believer, so I read it through 8 times. That's eight times eight chapters; sixty-four chapters. By this time, it was late into the morning. I closed my eyes and asked the Lord to speak to me. There was no audible voice, but a very clearly directed thought. He brought to mind the believers that were imprisoned around the world. And he brought to mind their joy. When I wondered why they had more joy being in prison WITHOUT their Bibles, than believers in America who have their Bibles, he said, "They may not have the word, but they have the Word."

This was huge for me. Up to this point, I would have self-labeled myself as a 'Bible-believing Christian.' I was Bible-centered, like most Baptists. But when the Lord spoke to me, something inside switched to Jesus-centered, and it never switched back.

I understand that I would never know the Word without the word. And I know that the Lord has magnified his word above his own name. But I also know that the Scriptures were given to point us to the Son so that the Son could bring us to the Father. Many believers are dry & dusty because they know the word, but not the WORD.

The second time that the Lord spoke to me, I was outside on a summer day. It was warm. I was sitting against the garage door. I was reading Haggai. When I reached the last verse, God spoke to me. "In that day, saith the LORD of hosts, will I take thee, O Zerubbabel, my servant, the son of Shealtiel, saith the LORD, and will make thee as a signet: for I have chosen thee, saith the LORD of hosts." (2:23)

For over a year, I refused to even research who Zerubbabel was because ... well, because GOD had called me by that name, or associated me with that name, or whatever it was. I'm still not exactly sure, but HE said that he had chosen me and set his seal on me. I couldn't even speak about it for years; I think it was four years before I mentioned it to anyone. I'm still not sure exactly what it means. I will say this, EVERY believer is chosen by God, EVERY believer has been sealed by God.