Hearing God's Voice 6

 

Surrender your anxiety!
Be silent and stop your striving and you will see that I am God.
I am the God above all the nations,
and I will be exalted throughout the whole earth. Psalms 46:10

When God does speak to you, it’ll be awesome and at time bewildering. One morning before the sun rose up over the jungle, we were up praying and seeking the Lord. I quieted my heart and began to pray. Suddenly, I heard a voice. It was not inside me or simply in my mind. I heard a voice. God spoke in such a clear fashion to me that morning that I can describe it as an audible voice that changed the course of my life and the life of my precious family. This voice was clear and unmistakable, giving me guidance. One of the things He said to me that morning was that we were to leave the jungle village and return to North America. But a doubt

Lingered. “Is this really you, Lord”?

I walked into each room of our house to make sure no one was playing a trick on me. Candice was asleep, and in the other rooms, I saw our three children. As I sat back with my open bible, I said, “Lord, if this is really You, then say it again to me.” The room filled with a silvery mist and the voice of the Lord repeated to me exactly the words I first heard. With my doubt removed, I waited for my wife to awaken so I could share with her the change in our plans. God is not mute, not hesitant to speak to His children who love Him.

Let God stretch your understanding, for His ways are not your ways. Be prepared for surprises! God’s communication with us is Spirit to spirit. I have never heard that voice again like I did that early morning. Perhaps He will speak to me again like that, but perhaps not. I have learned to follow Him and let Him speak to me according to His timing and His plan.

Turn Off Your Problems

To wait in silence before God is a lost art. As the presence of the Lord fills your heart, it’s good to wait quietly for Him to speak. It’s so important to wait quietly for Him to speak. It’s important to take that time to be alone, in solitude with Him. He loves it! For centuries, God’s people have found solitude and quietness as a doorway into His presence and into hearing His heart. One of the biggest secrets for receiving revelation is meditation.

³² “So listen, my sons and daughters, to everything I tell you,
for nothing will bring you more joy than following my ways.
³³ Listen to my counsel,
for my instruction will enlighten you.
You’ll be wise not to ignore it.
³⁴ If you wait at wisdom’s doorway,
longing to hear a word for every day,
joy will break forth within you as you listen for what I’ll say.
³⁵ For the fountain of life pours into you every time that you find me,
and this is the secret of growing in the delight
and the favor of the Lord. Proverbs 8:32-35

We are told throughout the Scriptures to meditate upon the Word of God.

² But his delight is in the law of the LORD,
And in His law he meditates day and night. Psalms 1:1-2

⁸ This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Joshua 1:8

King David frequently meditated on the goodness of the Lord and would awake in God’s presence.

^17–18 Every single moment you are thinking of me!
How precious and wonderful to consider
that you cherish me constantly in your every thought!
O God, your desires toward me are more
than the grains of sand on every shore!
When I awake each morning, you’re still with me. Psalms 139:18.

Dedicate both evening and morning to hearing from Him.

¹⁴⁷ Before the day dawns, I’ll be crying out for help
and wrapping your words into my life.
¹⁴⁸ I lie awake every night pondering your promises to me. Psalms 119:147-148

Fresh revelation is yours for the asking. Meditate on Him in the evening and in the morning and wait and watch as manna descends from heaven.

A heart filled with anxiety and worry won’t be able to hear God clearly. You need to lay aside whatever it is that’s troubling you. Give it to God and know that He’s in control.

⁶ Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; ⁷ and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7

If you’re feeling troubled about something, pray. It’s not a signal to worry! Our emotions are often no help at all. They may hinder us from hearing what God is trying to say. The best thing we can do is pray. Then not only will He relieve the burden, but He’ll speak to us about our part. Prayer changes things! Worry never changes a thing.

And don’t forget this: it is always right to ask God for confirmation from His Holy Word. He will not go against His Word, but I’ve found He’s quite willing to go against my understanding of His Word. We not only need to lay aside our worries, we need to lay aside our traditions and opinions if we truly desire to hear His voice. God will often speak through the pages of His inspired Word, so be quick to lay aside your limitations and come to God with an open Bible and a tender heart. Honor the Word of God, and the Lord will make sure you hear from Him!

The written Scriptures must have the final say in all our dreams, vision, and prophetic revelations. So often, our opinions of God’s Word will keep us from correctly hearing the Word of the Lord. But the Lord will never contradict His Word, and He’s not afraid to contradict our opinions and traditions regarding His Word. 

“Standing firm in heavens and fastened to eternity is the Word of God”, Psalm 119.89

Write It In a Journal

Great treasures are found in even one Word from the Lord. You may not understand what He’s saying to you now, but you will later. Write it in a journal and watch God open your understanding over time! Many intercessors have found it very helpful to keep a prayer journal and to record any words that God gives them in prayer. God holds these words in high esteem, and so should we. It’s so important that we write the revelation down so that we don’t lose it.

² Then the LORD answered me and said:
“Write the vision
And make it plain on tablets,
That he may run who reads it. Habakkuk 2:2

We’re to wage war with the Word of God and the prophetic words that He gives us. Use the Word of God like Jesus did when He said to satan,

⁴ But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’” Matthew 4:4

⁷ Jesus said to him, “It is written again, You shall not tempt the LORD your God.’” Matthew 4:7

¹⁰ Then Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.’” Matthew 4:10

However, don’t forget to use the words God has given to you through Prophecy, dreams, and visions as well.

These words, when interpreted properly, also give you even more ammunition for your prayer life.

¹ In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream and visions of his head while on his bed. Then he wrote down the dream, telling the main facts. Daniel 7:1

Even the Lord’s prophets in the Bible were often puzzled over what God said to them. Sometimes God will speak of something that will come later. We must be patient and wait for God to make it clear. He’s always on time. One day with the Lord is like a thousand years. He doesn’t live under the constraints of our schedules and ideas. God will always move in the fullness of time. Receiving revelation from God places us in a position of great responsibility to walk in wisdom. When you don’t understand, wait for it. For now, record it and save it for a later day.

³ For the vision is yet for an appointed time;
But at the end it will speak, and it will not lie.
Though it tarries, wait for it;
Because it will surely come,
It will not tarry. Habakkuk 2:3

It's not wise to set time limits for God. Your faith may be tested! It’s always best to wait on Him and let Him decide what’s best for you. You’re really blessed if you determine never to be offended by the way that He deals with you!

People have missed incredible opportunities because they had limited the timing for God to move on their behalf. The Lord often waits until the eleventh hour to move in power.

⁶ For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. Romans 5:6

The Holy Spirit

No one can ever take the place of the Holy Spirit. We must tune our hearts to hear the Lord, not just those who speak for Him. As you go on into Christ-likeness, you must develop a heart that will seek the Lord for yourself. We must desire intimacy, not just information. Beware of living off others’ faith instead of seeking God’s heart for yourself.

²⁷ But the wonderful anointing you have received from God is so much greater than their deception and now lives in you. There’s no need for anyone to keep teaching you. His anointing teaches you all that you need to know, for it will lead you into truth, not a counterfeit. So just as the anointing has taught you, remain in him. 1 John 2:27

As you begin this adventure of hearing God, there may be times when you may think that God has spoken to you only to learn later that you were listening to your own heart. Our inner thoughts may need realigning.

Mature friends of God who esteem and have an understanding of what the will of the Lord is, will distinguish between human impressions and God’s voice. Some of the ways we think may need alignment with His. The Lord allows us to hear those thoughts so that He can help us adjust our thinking and show us our need to repent and be changed into His likeness. A willing heart will be a hearing heart. Always do the last thing He gave you to do before you seek the next step.

As you walk in the light you have, the Lord will give you more light,

9 To know you is to experience a flowing fountain,
drinking in your life, springing up to satisfy.
In your light we receive the light of revelation. Psalms 36:9

When our will is yielded to God, you can expect the Holy Spirit to lead you even further. The Lord is patient to wait until our obedience is complete.

 ⁷ You must remain very strong and courageous! Be faithful to obey all the teaching that my servant Moses commanded you to follow. Do not deviate from him to the right or to the left, so that you will have overwhelming success in everything you undertake. Joshua 1:7

However, it’s not always wise to share your revelation with others. It is highly likely that they will not value what God is saying to you. Wisdom requires that we hold back from telling everything God gives us. Those who consistently hear from God will be quick to veil their knowledge in humility. Most of the time, when we blurt out what God is telling us, our motives are mixed with a desire to be seen by others as one who is closer to God than we truly are. Wait until God releases you to share your revelation with others. Paul the apostle waited fourteen years before he shared some of the experiences God had given him.

¹ Although it may not accomplish a thing, I need to move on and boast about supernatural visions and revelations of the Lord. ² Someone I’m acquainted with, who is in union with Christ, was swept away fourteen years ago in an ecstatic experience. He was taken into the third heaven, but I’m not sure if he was in his body or out of his body—only God knows. ³ And I know that this man (again, I’m not sure if he was still in his body or taken out of his body—God knows) ⁴ was caught up in an ecstatic experience and brought into paradise, where he overheard many wondrous and inexpressible secrets that were so sacred that no mortal is permitted to repeat them. ⁵ I’m ready to boast of such an experience, but for my own good I refuse to boast unless it concerns my weaknesses. ⁶ However, if I were to boast, it wouldn’t be ridiculous at all, for I would be speaking the truth. Yet I will refrain, lest others think higher of me than what I demonstrate with my life and teaching.
⁷ The extraordinary level of the revelations I’ve received is no reason for anyone to exalt me. For this is why a thorn in my flesh was given to me, the Adversary’s messenger sent to harass me, keeping me from becoming arrogant. ⁸ Three times I pleaded with the Lord to relieve me of this.⁹ But he answered me, “My grace is always more than enough for you, and my power finds its full expression through your weakness.” So, I will celebrate my weaknesses, for when I’m weak I sense more deeply the mighty power of Christ living in me. ¹⁰ So I’m not defeated by my weakness, but delighted! For when I feel my weakness and endure mistreatment—when I’m surrounded with troubles on every side and face persecution because of my love for Christ—I am made yet stronger. For my weakness becomes a portal to God’s power. 2 Corinthians 12:1-10

While Joseph shared his and ended up in a pit.

⁵ One night Joseph had a dream, and when he shared it with his brothers, they hated him even more! ⁶ ”Listen to this dream I had,” he told them. ⁷ ”There we were, binding sheaves of grain in the field. Suddenly, my sheaf rose up and stood upright. Then your sheaves gathered around mine and bowed down to mine!” ⁸ His brothers asked him, “Oh, so you think you’re going to be our king? Do you actually think you’re destined to rule over us?” So, the dream that he told them about made them hate him even more.
⁹ Then another night he had a dream, and he shared it with his brothers, saying, “Listen, I had another dream. This time, the sun and moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me.” ¹⁰ When his father and brothers heard it, his father scolded him, “What kind of dream is that? Do you really think that I, and your mother, and your brothers are going to come and bow to the ground before you?” ¹¹ So his brothers grew more jealous of him, but his father kept pondering Joseph’s dream.
Joseph Sold by His Brothers
¹² One day, when his brothers had gone to Shechem to care for their father’s flock, ¹³ Israel called for Joseph and said to him, “Your brothers are grazing the flocks near Shechem. I want you to go join them.”
“Yes, Father, I’ll go.” Joseph replied.
¹⁴ Jacob added, “Go find out how your brothers are doing with the flocks and bring word back to me.” So, his father sent him off from the valley of Hebron.
When Joseph arrived at Shechem ¹⁵ and began to roam the countryside looking for his brothers, a man approached him and asked, “What are you looking for?”
¹⁶ “I’m looking for my brothers, who are taking care of their flock,” he answered. “Please tell me, do you know where they are?”
¹⁷ The man replied, “They’ve left here already. I overheard them mention that they were going to Dothan.” So, Joseph took off to catch up with his brothers and found them at Dothan.
¹⁸ As he was still a long distance away, the brothers recognized him by his robe, and by the time he reached them, they had plotted together to kill him. ¹⁹ They said to each other, “Here comes this dream expert. ²⁰ Let’s kill him and throw his body into one of these dry wells. We can say that a wild animal ate him. Then we’ll see how his dreams turn out!”
²¹ When Reuben heard of this, he tried to save Joseph’s life. “Don’t take his life,” he said. ²² ”No bloodshed! Let’s throw him into this pit in the middle of nowhere, but don’t hurt him.” Reuben said these things because he planned to return later to rescue Joseph and take him back to his father.
²³ When Joseph finally caught up with his brothers, they seized him, stripped him of his ornamented robe, his beautiful full-length robe, Genesis 37:5-23

Try Asking God Questions

Have you ever thought of simply asking God a question before you go to bed at night? This is one way of receiving incredible wisdom and guidance from the Father. We must stay in constant communication with Him. Jesus said, ask and it shall be given.

⁷ “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. Matthew 7:7

He gave no condition or qualification to His statement. We can ask for anything and everything, including answers to question about scripture, our future, decisions in our life, ministry direction-anything.

I heard his answer, but it was like a riddle to me. So, I asked him, “Sir, how will all of this transpire?” Daniel 12:8

⁷ The way you counsel and correct me makes me praise you more,
for your whispers in the night give me wisdom,
showing me what to do next. Psalms 16:7

³ ‘Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.’ Jeremiah 33:3

Why not ask God your question before you go to sleep? If you’ve been saying God never speaks to you, here’s a challenge. For the next seven nights, ask the Lord a specific question and trust Him to speak to you before you awake in the morning.

²⁹ “Your Majesty, as you were going to sleep, your thoughts turned to what would happen in the future. The Revealer of Mysteries has disclosed future events to you. Daniel 2:29

⁴⁷ The king said to Daniel, “Your god is without question the God of all gods, the Master of all kings, and the Revealer of all mysteries since he has given you the revelation of this mystery.” Daniel 2:47

God is called” the Revealer of Mysteries.” Whatever you need, He has the answer. If you’re lacking wisdom about something today, just ask Him and He’ll give you the answer.

⁵ And if anyone longs to be wise, ask God for wisdom and he will give it! He won’t see your lack of wisdom as an opportunity to scold you over your failures, but he will overwhelm your failures with his generous grace. James 1:5

Even Jesus, the greatest prayer example of all, asked questions to learn the wisdom of God.

After being separated from him for three days, they finally found him in the temple, sitting among the Jewish teachers, listening to them and asking questions. ⁴⁷ All who heard Jesus speak were astounded at his intelligent understanding of all that was being discussed and at his wise answers to their questions. Luke 2:46-47

And the disciples were always asking questions of Him.

​¹ Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.” Luke 11:1

¹⁷ When He had entered a house away from the crowd, His disciples asked Him concerning the parable. Mark 7:17

Great and unsearchable things you’ve never even dreamed are awaiting you as you ask God.

PRAY THIS TODAY

Lord, I know you speak to me, but sometimes O don’t listen. I choose today to hear your voice. Speak to me. Give me an open ear to hear your voice and grace to follow you. Amen.

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