Skip to main content

God speaks to us in many varied ways. He speaks primarily through God’s Word, the Bible. This is His main way to build into us an understanding of His character and ways.

But God has made us whole beings with emotions, thoughts, ideas, impressions, and even hunches. There is this intuitive side to our brain in the frontal cortex that God has blessed us with that guides much of our decision making.

Contemplation leading to Innovation

The right hemisphere of the brain is considered the center of our creativity, and the left hemisphere is considered the more analytical and logical. In any kind of decision making, innovation must be matched with contemplation. Innovation comes to us through the process of using our cognitive skills developed over time empowering our ability to contemplate on different scenarios. Thus, contemplation informs innovation.

In decision making, we usually reference experience and knowledge to make our choices. Contemplation (left side) happens as we sift through data logically. But it’s not always the end point. For some, especially those with highly developed creative skills, this contemplation leads to innovation through the development of the right side of the brain.

All neuroscientists know that we need both sides of our brain to make decisions. God made us this way. It’s His natural way through His creative processes that He also speaks to us. My thesis is that God uses His Word, His Law, His history, contained in the Bible to inform us and build up the analytical logical side of our brain. And it’s in this left hemisphere that we meditate or contemplate the truth.

But God doesn’t stop there. As we contemplate, God speaks to us through the creative side of the right hemisphere of our brain. This is the innovation that His voice brings when we have a thought or hunch that may even seem to be out of the blue. Not illogical, but definitely not expected.

The more we develop our analytical side, the more informed we can be in our creative.  I believe this is why David writes,

 

“Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
He shall be like a tree
Planted by the rivers of water,
That brings forth its fruit in its season,
Whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall prosper” (Psalm 1:1-3).

 

David is sharing an insight into how our brain works and how God speaks to us. It’s as we contemplate truth from the Law of God that one is informed in innovative ways to obey God’s voice. So, take time to meditate in God’s Word and listen. God just may give you a very innovative idea you’ve never thought of before.

Pastor Steve