Steven Spielberg’s most profound quote was spoken during his interview on the Actor’s Studio. The host, James Lipton, ended many of his interviews with this question: “If God exists, what would you like to hear Him say when you appear before Him?” Spielberg’s blockbuster response, “Thanks for listening”
Steve Jobs, Albert Einstein and Steven Spielberg all glorify that “inner voice” as the source of their success. As a matter of fact, The Harvard Business Journal published an article in which 13,000 executives were surveyed. 80% said that their intuition, or their ‘inner voice’, was the reason for their success.
On the flip side, people’s hunches go sometimes disastrously wrong. Think of Ron Johnson of Apple and Target fame as well as JC Penney shame. His belief is similar to his mentor, Steve Jobs: ““All my ideas just sort of come. I don’t know how to explain it. It’s all intuitive I think.” It worked at Apple and Target, but failed miserably at JC Penney. The big question is why does it work sometimes and not others?
The key is in identifying the source or sources of that inner voice. I discovered the answer in the Bible. I believe the Bible to be the most time tested, credible source of truth in history. No other document has been scrutinized for accuracy as much as the Bible and no other document survives that scrutiny with such convincing authenticity. It is not a just a Jewish or Christian document. It is a love letter to humanity. “For God so loved the world….” is not exclusive. It is profoundly inclusive. What does the Bible say about that inner voice?.... a lot!
But first, let’s look at some other explanations. Neuroscience and secular thought gravitate toward a subconscious processing of information gathering that activates the non-analytical areas of the brain. In other words this belief states that it is the expression of knowledge from all our life experiences from conception to present then distilled and analyzed by some sub-conscious super computer that archives all experiences until it is needed in our conscience mind. This, however, fails to fully explain foreknowledge of future events of which the individual has no prior input to process. A similar theory is based on socialization; this somehow incorporates the secular view with a generational transference of knowledge similar to physiological dna transference, yet on a psychological level. Its more comprehensive and plausible, yet still fails the foreknowledge test. There are other more spiritual answers that both Christians and non-Christians refer to. They include angels, demons, and multi-dimensional sources beyond our natural understanding. There may be some truth in all these assumptions, yet none succeed in convincingly supplying a universal and comprehensive answer.
Let’s define the “inner voice” by the term “intuition". Research seems to use the terms interchangeably so it seems appropriate. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica intuition "is the power of obtaining knowledge that cannot be acquired either by inference or observation, by reason or experience. As such, intuition is thought of as an original, independent source of knowledge, since it is designed to account for just those kinds of knowledge that other sources do not provide."
The key is “an original, independent source of knowledge”. The simple answer that “scientists” reject, the elephant in the secularist’s living room, is that the original, independent source of knowledge is a Creator fully involved in His creation yet transcendent to it.
The Bible confirms this view and I call it “reason based on faith”. All scientific theory begins with a premise and is tested by objective logic and research to confirm its validity. If you begin with the premise that there is an intelligent design to the universe, there must be an intelligent designer. The 2nd law of thermo-dynamics dispels the idea of order coming from chaos. This law combined with the magnificently complex order of creation simply confirms the existence of a Creator. The Bible affirms this conclusion.
Furthermore, the Bible consistently confirms the Creator’s involvement with His creation. The historical and archaeological accuracy of the Bible make this assertion impossible to ignore. His involvement is not limited to “God’s chosen” or Christians or Muslims or any other religion. His involvement is universal. For God so loved the WORLD means just that. Would you not speak to someone you love? Perhaps the problem lies with Man’s failure to listen. Indeed, the Bible has hundreds of verses and dozens more stories about his communication with Man. The sum of all these scriptures is found in James 1:5, “But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.” The word ‘all’ in the Greek means, “any, all, every, the whole”. It includes everyone. The word ‘generously’ means, “bountifully or liberally”. The word ‘without reproach’ means He won’t judge or condemn you for asking. He's glad you asked. He’ll simply gives you the wisdom you asked for from His perspective. The other great assurance is that God is Love. He will always speak for your best interest and never steer you wrong. The formula seems to be to ask, believe, ponder and listen without thinking or having pre-conceived expectations of an answer; then hear and accept. People who successfully ‘listen’ seem to develop this attitude of listening and not thinking. This is not to the exclusion of thinking; the process just begins with listening, then acts in a reasonable and rational manner upon the ‘aha’ of hearing– reason based on faith that you heard the wisdom you were seeking, then acting in response to it. It sounds like the way intuition works doesn't it?
What about when ‘intuition’ goes wrong? The reality is that there are more voices than just God speaking. The other primary voice is self: rational thought, circumstances, earnest desires, and the need to survive all drive this other voice. Add to the mix the possibility of demons, angels, aliens, or other-dimensional beings and you can often hear multiple voices that bring confusion and frustration.
My firm conviction is that the answer to the source of intuition is simple. True intuition is the voice of a Creator acting on your behalf. Jesus quoted the Old Testament when He said, “Man (mankind) shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God”. He didn’t say Bible, He didn’t say the Law, and He wasn’t referring to some oracle. He was talking about direct communication with humanity; intimately and personally. Other voices are counterfeits competing for influence and rarely act selflessly in your best interest and with the level of knowledge of God. True intuition is for everyone willing to ask and listen. It’s the key to a successful and fulfilling life both personally and professionally. Now listen and live and learn to...
Live Loved,
Rich Ressel
Steve Jobs, Albert Einstein and Steven Spielberg all glorify that “inner voice” as the source of their success. As a matter of fact, The Harvard Business Journal published an article in which 13,000 executives were surveyed. 80% said that their intuition, or their ‘inner voice’, was the reason for their success.
On the flip side, people’s hunches go sometimes disastrously wrong. Think of Ron Johnson of Apple and Target fame as well as JC Penney shame. His belief is similar to his mentor, Steve Jobs: ““All my ideas just sort of come. I don’t know how to explain it. It’s all intuitive I think.” It worked at Apple and Target, but failed miserably at JC Penney. The big question is why does it work sometimes and not others?
The key is in identifying the source or sources of that inner voice. I discovered the answer in the Bible. I believe the Bible to be the most time tested, credible source of truth in history. No other document has been scrutinized for accuracy as much as the Bible and no other document survives that scrutiny with such convincing authenticity. It is not a just a Jewish or Christian document. It is a love letter to humanity. “For God so loved the world….” is not exclusive. It is profoundly inclusive. What does the Bible say about that inner voice?.... a lot!
But first, let’s look at some other explanations. Neuroscience and secular thought gravitate toward a subconscious processing of information gathering that activates the non-analytical areas of the brain. In other words this belief states that it is the expression of knowledge from all our life experiences from conception to present then distilled and analyzed by some sub-conscious super computer that archives all experiences until it is needed in our conscience mind. This, however, fails to fully explain foreknowledge of future events of which the individual has no prior input to process. A similar theory is based on socialization; this somehow incorporates the secular view with a generational transference of knowledge similar to physiological dna transference, yet on a psychological level. Its more comprehensive and plausible, yet still fails the foreknowledge test. There are other more spiritual answers that both Christians and non-Christians refer to. They include angels, demons, and multi-dimensional sources beyond our natural understanding. There may be some truth in all these assumptions, yet none succeed in convincingly supplying a universal and comprehensive answer.
Let’s define the “inner voice” by the term “intuition". Research seems to use the terms interchangeably so it seems appropriate. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica intuition "is the power of obtaining knowledge that cannot be acquired either by inference or observation, by reason or experience. As such, intuition is thought of as an original, independent source of knowledge, since it is designed to account for just those kinds of knowledge that other sources do not provide."
The key is “an original, independent source of knowledge”. The simple answer that “scientists” reject, the elephant in the secularist’s living room, is that the original, independent source of knowledge is a Creator fully involved in His creation yet transcendent to it.
The Bible confirms this view and I call it “reason based on faith”. All scientific theory begins with a premise and is tested by objective logic and research to confirm its validity. If you begin with the premise that there is an intelligent design to the universe, there must be an intelligent designer. The 2nd law of thermo-dynamics dispels the idea of order coming from chaos. This law combined with the magnificently complex order of creation simply confirms the existence of a Creator. The Bible affirms this conclusion.
Furthermore, the Bible consistently confirms the Creator’s involvement with His creation. The historical and archaeological accuracy of the Bible make this assertion impossible to ignore. His involvement is not limited to “God’s chosen” or Christians or Muslims or any other religion. His involvement is universal. For God so loved the WORLD means just that. Would you not speak to someone you love? Perhaps the problem lies with Man’s failure to listen. Indeed, the Bible has hundreds of verses and dozens more stories about his communication with Man. The sum of all these scriptures is found in James 1:5, “But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.” The word ‘all’ in the Greek means, “any, all, every, the whole”. It includes everyone. The word ‘generously’ means, “bountifully or liberally”. The word ‘without reproach’ means He won’t judge or condemn you for asking. He's glad you asked. He’ll simply gives you the wisdom you asked for from His perspective. The other great assurance is that God is Love. He will always speak for your best interest and never steer you wrong. The formula seems to be to ask, believe, ponder and listen without thinking or having pre-conceived expectations of an answer; then hear and accept. People who successfully ‘listen’ seem to develop this attitude of listening and not thinking. This is not to the exclusion of thinking; the process just begins with listening, then acts in a reasonable and rational manner upon the ‘aha’ of hearing– reason based on faith that you heard the wisdom you were seeking, then acting in response to it. It sounds like the way intuition works doesn't it?
What about when ‘intuition’ goes wrong? The reality is that there are more voices than just God speaking. The other primary voice is self: rational thought, circumstances, earnest desires, and the need to survive all drive this other voice. Add to the mix the possibility of demons, angels, aliens, or other-dimensional beings and you can often hear multiple voices that bring confusion and frustration.
My firm conviction is that the answer to the source of intuition is simple. True intuition is the voice of a Creator acting on your behalf. Jesus quoted the Old Testament when He said, “Man (mankind) shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God”. He didn’t say Bible, He didn’t say the Law, and He wasn’t referring to some oracle. He was talking about direct communication with humanity; intimately and personally. Other voices are counterfeits competing for influence and rarely act selflessly in your best interest and with the level of knowledge of God. True intuition is for everyone willing to ask and listen. It’s the key to a successful and fulfilling life both personally and professionally. Now listen and live and learn to...
Live Loved,
Rich Ressel
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