Holy Spirit Nudges and Cabinet Hinges

I had to take my two little girls to their annual doctor appointment early this morning. When my alarm buzzed loudly at O’dark hundred, I fumbled for my glasses on the nightstand, rolled out of my warm, cozy blankets, and stumbled to the bathroom to spritz dry shampoo into my limp hair.

As I reached into my dresser drawer for a t-shirt, I felt a nudge. Not a physical one, but an internal one.

It felt like a weak magnetic pull, or a gentle inclination.

“Wear your “Forgiven” shirt,” the nudge seemed to imply.

I struggled internally for a few seconds because I had already chosen a different shirt. But then, I thought, “What will it hurt? They’re both right here, and perhaps God is speaking.”

So I pulled it on, threw some cheerios in a Ziploc bag for the girls to nibble, and rolled down the driveway.

Halfway to the doctor’s office I felt another thought pop into my head which said,

“When you get to the office, check if there are any cabinet shops in the area.”

I was grateful for THAT nudge because a few weeks ago, the hinge broke on one of my kitchen cabinets leaving a gaping hole that showcased eight jars of peanut butter and four bottles of ketchup.

I pulled into a parking spot, and let the engine idle while I searched for cabinet shops and, wonder of wonders, there were three within a ten mile radius of my location!

I wasn’t sure which one to choose, but I felt more drawn toward one of the shops….another one of those quiet whisper-nudges, and it ended up being the closest.

So an hour later, we left the pediatrician and headed that way.

Barely three miles away was a deserted looking building, with two cars parked alongside it. We crunched up the gravel driveway, wheels spinning a bit in the loose gravel, and eased up to the entrance.

The bell over the door jangled quietly as I pushed it open. A gentle-looking man with white hair ambled to the counter and asked how he could help.

(I don’t know about you, but when faced with intense pressure situations like going to auto parts stores, and home improvement stores, I go in, mentally rehearsing what I need so that I don’t sound totally incompetent. )

“Yes, I’d like to look at cabinet hinges for a cabinet door 16 ½ by 20 inches.”

At least, that’s what I wanted to say, but at the key moment, I forgot my carefully planned speech and instead I stumbled out this monologue….

“Ummm, I need something because my cabinet door broke off, and I need the piece that clicks it back together and holds it. It’s metal. ”

The old man looked at me carefully and said gravely, “You talking about a hinge?”

“Oh yes, yes!” I say, embarrassed that I am so easily rattled by the smell of hardwood cabinet panels, and slots filled with drawer pulls and hardware.

He slid a cardboard box from the shelf behind him and asked, “Do you have the broken piece with you? Do you know what it looks like?”

“I didn’t think to bring it but I DO know what it looks like,” I proffered hesitantly, before tracing an awkward imaginary outline on the counter top.

He squinted his eyes a moment, then pulled a second box down and rummaged through it before placing the exact piece I needed in front of me.

“OH! That’s it! That’s the one I needed! Actually, do you have two, in case another hinge breaks?”

He laid a second hinge beside the first as I pulled out my wallet.

“What do I owe you?” I asked as my two-year old waved shyly to him from my hip.

“Nothing.” He said, and smiled.

“What? No, let me pay for it!” I exclaimed.

“No, it’s no charge,” he said. “You don’t owe anything.”

Sometimes you feel God’s grace and blessing, and his undeserved favor. A gift that was not earned, or merited.

“Well thank you so much! God bless you!” I responded gratefully.

“You too,” he responded as we started for the door.

Driving home, I remembered the series of small nudges I felt this morning. Would my path have been the same if I ignored one of those nudges? Would I be driving home with the blessing of free cabinet hinges clinking in my purse if I hadn’t listened to those nudges?

I don’t know.

Honestly, I don’t. But probably not.

I believe wholeheartedly in the Holy Spirit. John chapters 14-16 mention the Holy Spirit and His work in our lives. By these verses we know that the Holy Spirit is a “HE” not an “IT”, that He speaks truth, helps us remember Jesus’s words, and guides us by whispering things straight from the Father’s throne.

John 14:26 says, “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.”

John 16:13 says, “When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth, for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak, and He will declare to you the things that are to come.

Acts also mentions the Holy Spirit nudging the apostle Peter into a certain direction in Acts 10:19-20:

“While Peter thought about the vision, the Spirit said to him, “Behold, three men are seeking you. Arise therefore, go down and go with them, doubting nothing; for I have sent them.”

Galatians 5:16 commands us: “Walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.”

One of my favorite verses even says this:

“Your ears will hear a word behind you, ‘This is the way, walk in it,’ whenever you turn to the right or to the left.” Isaiah 31:20

So the picture of the Holy Spirit guiding us and nudging us and speaking to us is extremely biblical. But what does it feel like to walk it out? How do you hear the Holy Spirit? How do you know that it is Him?

First, I go about my day with the realization that the Holy Spirit does speak and probably wants to speak to me today. Second, I try not to ignore those tiny little nudges I feel.

Things like,

“Go read a book to the baby.

Hug the screaming child instead of sending her to her room.

Teach your math lesson this way.

Use this story for an example.

Take a different road on your way to town.

Read Isaiah 51.

Don’t run a certain errand.

Remember that you need to swap your clothes from the washer into the dryer.

Send your husband an encouraging text.

Write a thank you note to the water department.

Choose to rest instead of fold laundry.

Check on a friend.”

All these things are what I hear on a daily basis. But you might ask again, “How do you KNOW if it’s the Holy Spirit?”

In the beginning stages of experimenting with hearing the Spirit’s voice, it can be difficult, so I have some criteria that may help.

1 John 4:1-2 says, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God.”

So the first criteria would be, Is what I’m hearing Biblical?

Not everything you hear is of God. If you hear things that are NOT biblical like, “Go sleep with a married person, steal a candy bar, or be rude to your neighbor,” then you know for sure and certain it isn’t the Holy Spirit speaking at all!

Other things can be a little more vague, so if it isn’t dangerous, is not contradicted in the Scriptures, and won’t cause any issues, then do it.

The other day at Dollar General, I saw a lady loading groceries into her car. I thought I felt the nudge of Holy Spirit telling me to stop and ask her if she needed anything. So I backed my van up a few feet and called out the window, “Ma’am, do you need anything or any help?”

She shook her head no, smiled and said, “No, I think I’m good!”

So I replied, “Okay awesome. I just felt like God told me to ask you if you needed help and I like to err on the side of obedience if I’m not sure.”

She laughed and said, “I understand that!”

And we parted ways.

Did the Holy Spirit tell me to do that? Maybe. Maybe not. But I like to practice obedience if I’m not sure and it doesn’t hurt anything.

The second criteria would be, does this decision need more input?

What if you feel the Holy Spirit prompting you to do something bigger and more uncertain? Like, moving several states away, speaking to a family member about a tense issue, or quitting your job?

In these cases I say, pray, pray, and pray more. Search the Bible for similar examples, and situations. Ask for revelation. Speak to a trustworthy and godly friend or pastor. Discuss it with your spouse. And pray some more. In big decisions, I like to “pull a Gideon”.

(If you don’t remember this particular story, God told a man named Gideon to lead the Israelites against a huge army that was oppressing them. So Gideon asked for several signs to let him know if it was truly God. Gideon didn’t just have his own life on the line, he also would be responsible for the Israelites’ lives if the Lord wasn’t truly leading.)

Judges 6:39-40 says this, “Then Gideon said to God, ‘Do not be angry with me, but let me speak just once more: let me test, I pray, just ONCE MORE with the fleece; let it now be dry only on the fleece, but on all the ground, let there be dew.’ And God did so that night. It was dry on the fleece only, but there was dew on all the ground.”

Praying, “Holy Spirit, I’ll do whatever You want me to do, but I just want to make SURE this is You,” is always a good prayer.

I think one of the biggest revelations I ever received is that God speaks.

He speaks more than I ever thought He did.

The issue then comes back to me and my hearing.

I don’t know if you guys remember those old F.M. Radios that used to be around. You know, the ones where you have to wrap the antenna in aluminum foil, and put it near a window, and then delicately finger the dial until you get a clear signal and can rock out to your favorite tunes.

In my humble opinion, hearing from God can be kind of like that. Sometimes you have to remove some distractions, make space for listening, and quiet all the other voices calling for attention to better hear. You can do this by setting aside some time in the morning, afternoon, or on your drive to work to just sit in silence and ask God to speak.

Recently, after a long day, I locked myself in the bathroom, and asked God, “Well, do you have anything to say?” I was honestly a little overwhelmed by the day and expected He’d say something like,
”Tomorrow, I want you spend uninterrupted time with each of your children, and clean the house top to bottom.”

Instead I heard this, “I love you. You’re doing a good job.”

The fragrance of Holy Spirit, even more than the words comforted me. He is really so very amazing.

So if you want to hear from God,

Listen.

He’s speaking.

And watch out for those Holy Spirit little nudges. You may end up with some free cabinet hinges.