Turtle Talk: Self-Talk vs. Divine Inspiration

By Denny Wayman

What is generally known about “self-talk” as compared and contrasted with divine inspiration is quickly and easily summarized by AI:

“The reliable difference between self-talk and divine inspiration can be understood through their distinct characteristics and sources.

“Self-talk refers to the internal dialogue that individuals have with themselves. It is a form of personal reflection and can be either positive or negative. Self-talk is influenced by one’s thoughts, emotions, experiences, and beliefs. It is a way for individuals to process their feelings, make decisions, and motivate themselves. Self-talk is entirely human and can be controlled and directed by the individual.

“Divine inspiration, on the other hand, is believed to be a form of guidance or insight that comes from a higher power, such as God. It is often associated with religious or spiritual experiences where individuals feel that they are receiving messages or wisdom from a divine source. Divine inspiration is considered to be beyond human control and is seen as a way for a higher power to communicate with individuals. It is often described as a profound and transformative experience that can lead to significant insights and actions.

“In summary, while self-talk is an internal and personal process influenced by one’s own thoughts and emotions, divine inspiration is perceived as external guidance from a higher power that can lead to profound spiritual insights and actions.”

This general understanding is helpful but incomplete, and, because of what is lacking, it can give the impression that a person can easily distinguish between these two voices. When we speak in the voice of our own internal mother, father, pastor, teacher, conscience, values, biases, or experiences, such a voice often feels as though we are receiving insights from beyond us. And in a way, they are, but not from the Divine.

Influencing the Internal

Therapists and pastors spend a great deal of time helping people recognize the source or “first author” of the message now being repeated internally in what seems to be our own voice. However, self-talk seldom originates with the self but comes from influences that have become archetypal beliefs deep within the shadows of our minds and souls.

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“… we cannot say that the voice is discerned from the message.”

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Though this internal voice is often labeled “negative self-talk” with the observation that such shadowed sources of inner messages are predictably negative toward self, others and God, those sources are not exclusively dark or negative. The shadow simply speaks out of buried influences that no longer speak with their original voices but have become deceivingly transmitted to speak with our own voice. For example, when we hear an internal voice of fear, we may not recognize that it is not our own but our mother’s voice. Similarly, when we hear our inner voice telling us we have to buy something, we do not recognize it as the voice of the ever-imploring advertiser.

If we stop for a moment and remember the last time we experienced a message to ourselves, then we can take a moment to pull back the curtain and shine a light into the shadows and ask ourselves: Where did I first hear this message? Who was the first author? Whose script am I adopting? Where or when did I first adopt this value, or belief, or action?

Almost always, such an attempt to identify the source and examine the roots of our internal messages will be strongly if not vehemently opposed by what feels like our own self. But even this resistance, like the large and blustering image of the fake Wizard in Oz, is only a distraction that harms our ability to know ourselves with full self-awareness.

As a pastoral counselor, I have asked the following question many times in counseling sessions. After repeating back a hurtful, demanding or judgmental statement that the person has just said, I will ask: “Who does that sound like?” And most often, I can see the light flash in their eyes as the insight illumines them: “That’s what my father said.” “That is my family’s motto!” “That was my brother or sister’s mantra,” or “I heard that from my youth pastor, my teacher, my friend.”

The truth is that self-talk doesn’t have to be a negative message we’ve adopted with our own voice. It can be a motivating motto, a discerning wisdom, a life-enhancing nudge toward the good and best. But in all cases, the original voice — the first speaker — has been replaced with our own voice repeating what we were told.

I’ve often read the guidance that we can’t know the voice, and so we must evaluate the message. The implication is that all self-talk is negative in messaging and all divine inspiration is positive. But for anyone who has encountered the living God, we know that to not be true. In fact, some of the most transformative moments for a person who listens to God bring us to the conviction of sin, the imploring us to stop or to turn around, the necessity of apologizing, the admission of being wrong, and so much more. So we cannot say that the voice is discerned from the message.

It also needs to be acknowledged that some messages come not from those who spoke in the past, but from spiritual places of darkness and temptation. Speaking most often through our own proclivities and desires, which make the self-talk feel as though it is coming from within, the truth is that some thoughts are implanted not by flesh and blood (1 John 4:1).

Thus, the complicated truth of the differences between self-talk and divine inspiration must begin by recognizing how difficult it is to identify the source of the message and discern what is truly our own self talking and not a shadowed mimicking of another’s voice or even a demonic message imposing itself upon us.

True and positive self-talk is a healthy communication between a thriving soul and a receptive mind, flowing out of a humble heart and acted upon by an obedient body. In other words, inner health capable of uplifting self-talk is the result of the lifelong pilgrimage of a good and faithful servant, cleansed in thought, word and deed (Philippians 4:8).

Divine Inspiration

Having woven a holistic understanding of self-talk, we can now contrast and compare this with divine inspiration. Although the general wisdom is that divine inspiration is simply a “message that has come from beyond human control and is seen as a way for a higher power to communicate with individuals,” this explanation is logically circular. It tells us only that the source is divine, which we already know, and that it is communication, which is inherent in our question.

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“The most common experience of divine communication in a Christian is to become inwardly aware of a truth, or a call, or an assignment…”

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It is, of course, no surprise that this is all the insight we can receive from those who only discuss divine intervention theoretically, but it does help us identify the core of our question. We are not talking about something that can be known or described by the language and knowledge of the world (2 Peter 1:20-21). For example, the Divine is a higher power, and inspiration is communication from above. It is not hard to understand then why persons with that level of information question how we can hear the voice of God and not be considered psychotic or why it would be the opinion of the world that our speaking to God is fine, but if God speaks to us, then we are insane.

Of course, there are mental illnesses that cause hallucinations such that the auditory portions of our brain hear what is not there, whether that is a voice identified as a god or not. But hallucinating is very different from what is meant by being inspired.

Though it is possible that someone “hears” a voice and acts upon that experience, such a process is extremely rare. It reminds us of the boy Samuel who was awakened when he heard the voice of God and ran to Eli thinking it was his voice. I have only known a handful of people who actually turned to see the source of a voice speaking to them. The most common experience of divine communication in a Christian is to become inwardly aware of a truth, or a call, or an assignment that did not cause them to turn their ears to hear better but rather to quickly silence their thoughts and open their hearts to God’s message.

At this point, this discussion becomes intensely personal. God communicates uniquely into the soul, mind, heart and body of His servants, and the result is that we are divinely inspired.

As a pastor and superintendent, I learned to ask a simple question of those for whom I was responsible and who were co-leaders of the church: “How does God speak to you?”

I understand the co-existing dynamics of the call of the church, the natural gifting of the leader, their heart for service, their love for people, that internal self-talk of my co-leaders confirming the divine call. But it is this uniquely personal listening and obedience to God that is of vital importance for every Christian and certainly every Christian leader at any level. So how does God speak to you? What is your God-language?

In psychology, researchers found that twins often create their own internal, uniquely personal secret language (cryptophasia – secret speech; idioglossia – unique tongue). Knowing each other from the moment of conception, these two eternal souls find ways of understanding and being understood that are outside the grasp of any others. In a similar way, the One who knew us and knit us together in our mother’s womb (Jeremiah 1:5) has collaborated with us to create our own cryptophasia. So what is that within you? How does God speak to you?

Believing that God gives His prevenient grace to all persons, coming to us long before salvation, we also believe that God speaks in ways that every person can hear. He knows their unique language. He stands at the door and knocks, and if they will open that barrier to their hearts, He will come in and have an intimate supper with them (Revelation 3:20).

Turtle Talk

I will give one example of my own shared language with my Lord. In my third year of pastoral ministry, I was on my prayer run and was troubled that I had been working so hard to build the church and had only experienced what the world, and I, would have called a modest increase. But a new pastor had come into our conference and, within two years, had exploded a small congregation into hundreds. I was confused. Why was God not bringing that kind of “success” to me — especially when I was sincerely and diligently working to serve Him?

It was then, in that moment, that God gave me only one word, one image, one thought. It was not at all what I expected, and it broke in upon me with volumes of meaning. I saw a turtle and heard the thought “I made you a turtle.” Immediately, I translated “turtle” to “tortoise” and thought of Aesop’s fable of “The Tortoise and the Hare.” I saw the full message of my place in God’s world. I was a tortoise, and, though I may be running against hares, my responsibility is to slowly build a strong and enduring faith, church and ministry and to faithfully finish the race (2 Timothy 4:7). It was then that my soul came to peace, and my mind stopped the comparisons with others. My will became firm as I continued to build His church slowly with faith in God.

I want to point out by way of explanation that God used my early life in Oklahoma and the language we had shared since conception, which did not give me the word “tortoise.” We spoke “turtle,” God and I, and we have spoken “turtle” ever since.

There are, of course, many times when God has led my thoughts, created my dreams, taught me His truths and given me His visions not only for myself, my family and church, but also for our conference, denomination and Christendom. But the point of divine inspiration is not about how He speaks to others, but how He speaks to you and me personally. Each of us in our own unique experiences with God has our own moments of holy ground, nocturnal calls, bright lights and burning visions (Exodus 3:4; 1 Samuel 3:10; Acts 9:4-6).

The task of pastoral counselors and Christian therapists includes the quieting of the shadowed voices of our self-talk so that we can receive the positive messages of our true self to our self and the divine inspirations of our loving God who communicates uniquely with each of us without exception. It is that walk and talk with God in the cool of the day that allows us to live in the paradise of His creation (Genesis 3:8).

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