What is your sign? Should actually be a Christian statement.
Today, we’re diving into a topic that’s both fascinating and profoundly important: how God gives us signs in modern times. Some of you need to know how to see the signs and symbols that God is using all around you. You may be saying “I don’t hear from God…” but He is speaking way more than you know, if you could only understand his parabolic and metaphorical language.
We do have a class with Troy Brewer coming up: Understanding Your Prophetic Signs in the Heavens, you can sign up for it here: https://courses.bolzministries.com/p/understanding-your-prophetic-signs-in-the-heavens
Grab your Bible and get ready to explore this with me.
Times when influencers and celebrities encountered God through signs:
Beau Bridges
In a 1982 Guideposts story, actor Beau Bridges shares the story of his first personal experience with God. He was 12 years old, shooting arrows into the sky with some buddies. Everyone else’s arrows fell straight back to the ground, but Bridges’ went missing. He looked everywhere, but couldn’t find it. Hours later, he felt drawn to a tree miles from where he had been looking. His arrow was stuck to the tree. The incident ignited his interest in God.
Meryl Streep
It’s hard to imagine that Meryl Streep once believed acting wasn’t for her. Widely considered the best actress of her generation, she has received 21 Academy Award nominations—more than any other actor—and won three times. But her life almost took a very different path. After graduating from Vassar College in 1971, Streep originally planned to pursue a legal career. She registered to take an exam to get into law school. But the morning of the test, she slept through her alarm. She ended up missing it entirely. Of course, she could have rescheduled. But Streep took this as a sign from God. Clearly, she wasn’t meant to be a lawyer. Instead, she went on to earn her Yale Drama graduate degree. And the rest, as they say, was history.
Gloria Estefan
Thirty years ago, three-time Grammy winner Gloria Estefan had a brush with the divine that she’ll never forget. On March 20, 1990, the singer’s tour bus was rear-ended by an eighteen-wheeler. Gloria’s back was broken. Even after emergency surgery, doctors warned that it was possible she’d never dance again, never walk again. Gloria began intensive physical therapy that stretched on for months. Her long but miraculous full recovery showed her the power of prayer. “It wasn’t until I was the recipient of everyone’s collective thoughts that I clearly understood,” she said. “I would visually see the prayers entering my body and going to my spine. I would imagine nerves reconnecting and doing all these things. Literally, I was sucking in that energy that I was feeling. It was keeping me buoyed and up.” Gloria said the experience “gave meaning” to her fame. She channeled her encounter in her next album, Into the Light. Its single, “Coming Out of the Dark,” was a love letter to everyone who’d stood by her.
Jill Wagner:
In a new video for Great American Family, Jill Wagner shared her thoughts on signs from God and the personal signs she’s received from Him through the years.
Wagner said she started to have a “real” relationship with God in her “mid-to-late-30s.”
“It was like my eyes were open all of a sudden,” she shared.
“I started to see signs all around me, and God was talking to me every single day, whereas before…I didn’t have the lines of communication open up there,” the actress said. “But they’re there.”The Movieguide® Grace Prize® nominee then shared some personal stories about signs God has given her over the years. “I used to ask God, ‘Give me a sign if I should do this thing, or not do this thing,’ which I’m sure we all have done,” she said. “One particular time, I said, ‘If I’m going to be okay, I need to turn on the radio and hear ‘Sittin’ On the Dock of the Bay.’”She continued, “I kid you not, this actually happened to me when I was in college. I don’t know if I even expected to get a response. It kind of just came out. And I remember, I turned the channel, and it was ‘Sitting’ On the Dock of the Bay.’”
“Every time that song randomly comes on, for me, it’s like seeing a rainbow,” Wagner said. “It’s like a little wink from God to say, ‘You’re going to be okay.’”
Wagner reminded her viewers to look for God’s signs in their lives.
“Signs don’t always have to be objects like a song or a rainbow,” she explained. “I feel like they can be people coming in and out of our lives.”
The actress also shared her favorite symbol of God’s presence: rainbows.
Distinguishing between our thoughts and God’s voice is crucial.
If what God said lines up with reality, it’s often a sign (Titus 1:2).
We control our thoughts, but God controls what happens outside us.
God’s words match reality; He doesn’t lie (Titus 1:2).
The Bible warns about false messages (Deuteronomy 18:21-22).
Understanding God’s sovereignty is vital.
God is in control, and His plan overrides human actions (Proverbs 19:21).
God uses circumstances to speak to us.
Signs often relate directly to our prayers.
Biblical wisdom is about applying knowledge.
The Bible provides guidance, not just rules (James 1:5).
1 Corinthians 8 illustrates how to apply knowledge.
When the Bible directs action, it’s a sign from God (Matthew 26:53-54).
The Bible reveals causes and effects.
Proverbs teaches consequences (Proverbs 10:4).
When causes occur, effects often follow.
Signs can be indicators of future events.
Seek clarity, not confusion.
Don’t force meaning into every event.
God is not a God of confusion (1 Corinthians 14:33).
Lack of understanding doesn’t mean it’s a sign.
God won’t send signs to confuse us more.
What are the signs God is already giving you? For me I have some life long signs like the Scripture Isaiah 22:22 is significant to me so often when I God is trying to get my attention the number 22 will be on something like a receipt at a coffee shop where I feel prompted to share my faith, or even on hotel room doors that I am staying it that I haven’t chosen.
Sometimes I even get sign overload where the same signs or symbols come like a barrage or onslaught to prove the point that God is with me.
Signs should be encouraging and a part of your life too. Ask God to speak to you through His signs and symbols just as He did to Israel and to the Early church and all through Christian history!