Have you ever learned how to hear God’s voice? It may seem mysterious or even confusing but I’m convinced anyone of His children can.
At GLI, listening for our Father’s voice is woven into the very fabric of our DNA. We teach people how to listen to Him in our discipleship counseling, our conferences, and our Advanced Discipleship Training. We stop to listen to Him for wisdom in our leadership team meetings. We listen to Him to get direction before we pray for someone.
Jesus said in John 10:3-4, Jesus states that His sheep hear His voice. The sheep are we, who are in Christ.
The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice.
We primarily hear His voice through the Bible and any other way He speaks will never contradict the Bible. However, there are other ways He speaks.
Have you ever heard a sermon or song and knew God was speaking directly to
you?
Have you ever had an urge to pray for someone for no reason?
Have you ever had peace in your spirit to take a step of faith, or a check in your
spirit to not do something that might have even been logical?
Have you ever had God speak to you through a movie you watched or even a song that wasn’t particularly Christian?
Or, have you ever had thoughts that entered your mind that had such an unusual quality, you just knew He was speaking to you.
These are just some of the ways we hear the Holy Spirit’s voice. Here are a few
examples.
A legalistic pastor, David, came to our training and was challenged to go ask God this question. “What do you think about me?” When he returned, he wept as he relayed how Jesus had said to him, “I love you if you never do anything for me ever again.” This was the first time he’d ever heard his Father speak to him.
“Lord, please give me a Scripture today, Shaquita asked.” Psalm 46:1-3 came to mind and it said, “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.” She felt so encouraged because she had been feeling overwhelmed with life.
“There is great difficulty coming into your life but I will be sufficient.” That person heard this spoken five years ago, before his daughter was stricken with an autoimmune disease.” I was that person and it prepared me.
Why don’t you practice asking Jesus to speak to you? Some people journal this. You will not always get it right, but you’ll become much more accustomed to hearing Him.
Here are two cautions. If you are making a major decision and you think you’ve heard His voice, get counsel from people you know who are intimate with Jesus and mature. Don’t ask Him which stock you should invest in, He doesn’t answer that question! 🙂
We invite you to try out the introductory classes in our Advanced Discipleship Training that kicks off in April, 2019 that includes a class on Hearing God.
Grace and Peace,
Mark Maulding
