Hearing Gods Voice

As Christians, one thing that is emphasized is hearing God’s voice. But how do we do that?? Over the last week, I have been doing a study on how to hear God’s voice and I want to share it with you.

If you are anything like me, you dedicate time to the Lord every morning in our Bibles and we pray throughout the day but we somehow can’t hear God’s voice. For me, I pray for God to give me signs for decisions I need to make. I make my signs specific and sometimes I don’t know what I need but I know I need a sign. God always comes in clutch when I truly believe he can show me my way. But what about hearing his voice? Through my study, one of the biggest things keeping us from God is mental barriers. But what are those mental barriers??!…Pride, Fear, and Bitterness. James 1:21 reads “So get rid of all the filth and evil in your lives, and humbly accept the word God has planted in your hearts, for it has the power to save your souls(NLT).” PRIDE keeps us from hearing God because sometimes we don’t think we need to hear Him. We think we’ve got this, it will be ok. But is it? Are we closing ourselves off and preventing ourselves from hearing God’s voice? A very common human emotion is FEAR. Fear keeps us at bay not allowing us to seek what we need. Are we scared of God’s voice? We shouldn’t be scared. Fear is not from God. God will never give us something scary. God’s voice is a beautiful thing that is not from fear. BITTERNESS comes from our past traumas, our past issues that close us to God. Sometimes we carry our burdens, hurts, resentments, our grudges. We need to work on letting go. Yes, it hurts to remember our past wrongs but to go forward we need to leave the past behind us. Our hard hearts towards others block us from God’s love at times. We need to open our hearts to Him. We need to get rid of our struggles and we need to humbly come to God and accept the Word, open ourselves to God, welcome Him into our lives, and allow him to speak to us.

When we dedicate our time to God we begin to bear good Fruits. When we have deep roots in our Faith we have good Fruit. What does this have to do with hearing God? When we spend time with God every day the deeper our spiritual roots are. Luke 8:13 says “The seeds on the rocky soil represent those who hear the message and receive it with joy. But since they don’t have deep roots, they believe for a while, then they fall away when they face temptations (NLT).” When we spend every day in our Word and we pray to God it becomes a habit. When we have the habit of dedicating our lives to Christ we begin to take these words and relate them to our own lives and start practicing it. We develop deeper roots in our Faith. When we have strong roots because our belief doesn’t go away, when we face trials we take it to God. The more we take our struggles to God the more open our hearts are. When we open our hearts we hear what God has to say to us.

OK, we are working on setting aside our PRIDE, FEAR, and BITTERNESS. We have dedicated time every day to God and we are developing deep roots in our Faith. What now?! Are your circuits busy?? If we are overrun by worries, stresses, noise(constant noise like TV and music), our plans and schedules we won’t hear God. Luke 8:14 says “The seeds that fell among the thorns represent those who hear the message, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the cares and riches and pleasures of this life. And so they never grow into maturity (NLT).” We need to find silence every day so we can open ourselves to God’s voice. Our thoughts are like weeds choking out our ability to hear God. When our brains are racing with anything and everything we aren’t open to God. Luke 8:7 says “Other seed fell among thorns that grew up with it and choked out the tender plants (NLT).” When we don’t spend time with God regularly or we don’t take our time when reading what He says we don’t take it to heart. Instead, we allow the world to take precedence and we lose the meaning of what we read. When we lose the meaning of what God says, we are creating busyness crowding out God’s voice.

When we want to hear God we need to say YES!! We have to mentally prepare ourselves for God’s voice. We have to be willing to do what he says. We have to open our hearts and minds. Whatever God calls us to do we will do it. God wants us to have an attitude of obedience. To bear good Fruit we need to allow God to work in us. When God tells us something we share it with others. When we ask God what we should do we need to be prepared to act on it. If we pray for God to open a door and he does but he wants us to move to another town or house or state to allow that opened door to take effect we need to be prepared to move. If God wants us to set something aside so we can fulfill what we prayed we need to set whatever that is aside. God will never ask us to do something that we can’t do. Luke 8:15 says “And the seeds that fell on the good soil represent honest, good-hearted people who hear God’s word, cling to it, and patiently produce a huge harvest.” When we show obedience to God and are patient we will produce good Fruit

Sometimes we get thoughts or ideas in our heads but are they from God? Some people say that they did X, Y, and Z because “God told me to do it”. But did He? 1 John 4:1 says “Dear friends, do not believe everyone who claims to speak by the Spirit. You must test them to see if the spirit they have comes from God. Foor there are many false prophets in the world (NLT).” Not everything is from God. If you get an idea or a thought and it lines up with Gods teachings God is coming to you through your mind. If your throuhgts contradict what Christ teaches you are being spoken to by principalities. In a less life-changing scenario, if we get a thought to punch a hole into a screen door that feeling does not come from God. God teaches us productivity, not destruction. But if we get a feeling that we need to bring flowers to the next-door neighbor who just lost her husband that is from God. God teaches us love and compassion for others. These are terrible examples but I hope you get what I am saying. God’s Word is never wavering. Luke 21:33 says “Heaven and earth will disappear, but my words will never disappear (NLT).” We need to learn discernment to help us hear God.

When we are overwhelmed or confused we are stuck in our own thoughts and not focusing on God. 1 Corinthians 14:33 says, “For God is not a God of disorder but of peace, as in all the meetings of God’s holy people (NLT).” God doesn't bring confusion, if you are confused it is not God’s influence. If we aren’t listening to God we may feel pressure but once we start obeying we will find peace. Satan wants confusion and compulsions to run our lives, God wants peace. If you are receiving negative messages they are not from God. If you feel God is telling you to do something but you are overwhelmed by anxiety, go to him in prayer. Pray for peace and clarity. God does not bring anxiety. Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what we need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus (NLT).”

You have to have the want to. You have to really, really want to hear from God. It is necessary, it is not a suggestion. If we want to debate what God says he will not trust us with his voice. You have to tell God that you need to know what he wants with your life. I have to hear your voice and hear your vision for my life. We have to honor God. Psalms 40:8 says, “I take joy in doing your will, my God, for your instructions are written on my heart (NLT).” Being obedient is not an option. We have to have desperation, the hunger for God. Prayer isn’t a monologue, it is a discussion. Deuteronomy 4:29 says, “But from there you will search again for the Lord your God. And if you search for him with all your heart and soul, you will find him (NLT).” When we want God we will find Him, heart and soul.

We have to find quiet, silence. We are constantly surrounded by noise; the TV, the radio. It is literally everywhere: the store, restaurants, offices. Matthew 6:6 says, “But when you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father in private. Then your Father, who sees everything, will reward you (NLT).” When we want to hear God and receive his vision for us we need to meet with him in silence. We aren’t waiting on God, God is waiting on us. He wants some of your time every day. If you want it you will do it. Find quiet time!

We need to spend quiet time with God. The best time for this is in the mornings. Wake up thirty minutes earlier than you normally do and meet with God. Get rid of all distractions and meet with him. Psalms 37:7 says, “Be still in the presence of the Lord and wait patiently for him to act. Don’t worry about evil people who prosper or fret about their wicked schemes (NLT).” Do not rush your time with God. Think of a famous person you would kill to meet! In my case, it would be Miss Dolly Parton. Let’s say you have a scheduled meeting with Miss Dolly herself at 7am. You wouldn’t sleep, you would get up hours early, make sure you had your hair done, your makeup on, and the best jeans you could find. You would probably be at your meeting spot at least by 6:30am. Treat God like your famous person. But the bonus is for God you don’t have to look your best, you can get the sleep that you need, and come in your sweats with a bun on top of your head. Meet with him every day for at least thirty minutes, the longer the better. God will change your life for the better, but TV late into the night won’t.

God comes to many of us with mental images, visions, or dreams if you will. For visual thinkers like myself, this is perfect. You can hear God’s word and see it. When you read a book you can live it. You can live the stories in the bible. Visions may be perfect for you. Ask God questions. “God, is there anything you want to say to me?” “God, is there anything I need to know that I am not thinking about?” James 1:5 says, “If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you, He will not rebuke you for asking (NLT).” Be specific. Ask God your questions. If you seek wisdom from him he will come with answers. They might not be the answers we want but they will be the answers we need. Psalms 119:18 says, “Open my eyes to see the wonderful truths in your instructions (NLT).” Ask God to open your eyes to his vision for you.

Find a quiet space and pray. When God speaks to us we need to write it down. Ask your questions, seek your answers. Write your questions and the answers. I suggest getting a notebook and writing all your prayers. I love the Notes app on my phone. During the day when something is heavy on my heart, I get my phone out and I type out my prayers. When I have time or when I take time in the morning to read my word I write them down. I have a notebook designated to my prayers. Many of them I have sat down and wrote out. The majority of them I have written down out of my notes app. God hears our thoughts and sees what we write down. Habakkuk 2:2 says, “Then the Lord said to me, “Write my answer plainly on tablets, so that a runner can carry the correct messages to others.” (NLT)” We need to be able to go back to what God has spoken to us. God doesn't care what we write down but we need to do it! We need to get into the spiritual habit of prayer and responsive journaling. Journaling shows us and others what we have learned from God.