Listening Prayer 5

 

Morning by morning He awakens my heart. He opens my ears to hear His voice, to be trained to teach. The Lord Yahweh has opened my ear, and I did not resist-I did not rebel.

Isaiah 50:4-5

It is so important to cultivate listening prayer- the heart that listens. We are quick to tell God our “shopping list” of requests, asking Him to break through and bring a miracle. That’s wonderful! He wants us to come to Him to ask. But who will stop to listen to the Lord’s heart as He will speak clearly in our throne room prayer encounter?

I always like to worship as means to hear God’s voice. The words of a song often become the very voice of the Father to our heart. It was that way for the early church. As they worshipped, God spoke to them.

² While they were worshiping as priests before the Lord in prayer and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “I have called Barnabas and Saul to do an important work for me. Now, release them to go and fulfill it.” Acts 13:2

As you begin to cultivate a life of worshipping Him, it will all begin to make sense. It’s not just about singing words. It’s so much more than that. It’s that place of allowing yourself to be vulnerable to emotions of His heart as He touches yours. It’s allowing the words and melodies to bring you before Him and into His presence. Start worshipping at home, and as you do, you’ll experience a softening of your heart to Him and He’ll begin to speak to you! I Can’t begin to tell you how many times the Lord has ministered to me as I’ve poured myself out before Him in worship. It’s out of this place of deepest intimacy that God will speak.

Lovers of God have been given eyes to see and ears to hear from God.

¹² Lovers of God have been given eyes to see
with spiritual discernment
and ears to hear from God. Proverbs 20:12

God is the one that gives us the hearing ear and the seeing eye. God causes us to hear His glorious voice.

When He opens our ears to hear, it is sweat beyond words. I have a friend who has been a pastor for many years who recently told me. “I can’t believe what’s happened to me. I never stopped praying long enough to listen to God’s voice. Now, He is speaking to me every day!”

I believe it is possible to hear God’s voice and His whisper every day. The key is having our ears opened by God. Are you ready to hear things that may challenge you or make you uncomfortable?

5 The voice of the LORD breaks the cedars,
Yes, the LORD splinters the cedars of Lebanon. Psalms 29:5

So don’t be surprised if it shatters your traditions and opinions wide open. To have our ears opened by God to listen is to be devoted to doing what He tells us to do.

Seven times Jesus stated that He spoke only what the Father taught Him to say.

6 “Father, I have manifested who you really are
and I have revealed you to the men and women
that you gave to me.
They were yours, and you gave them to me,
and they have fastened your Word firmly to their hearts.

John 17:6

²⁸ “You will know me as ‘I AM’ after you have lifted me up from the earth as the Son of Man. Then you will realize that I do nothing on my own initiative, but I only speak the truth that the Father has revealed to me. John 8:28

⁴⁷ If you really knew God, you would listen, receive, and respond with faith to his words. But since you don’t listen and respond to what he says, it proves you don’t belong to him and you have no room for him in your hearts.” John 8:47

I will rise up to judge you at the Day of Judgment. ⁴⁹ For I’m not speaking as someone who is self-appointed, but I speak by the authority of the Father himself who sent me, and who instructed me what to say. John 12:48-49

¹⁰ Don’t you believe that the Father is living in me and that I am living in the Father? Even my words are not my own but come from my Father, for he lives in me and performs his miracles of power through me. John 14:10

²⁴ But those who don’t love me will not obey my words. The Father did not send me to speak my own revelation, but the words of my Father. John 14:24

⁸ And the very words you gave to me to speak
I have passed on to them.
They have received your words
and carry them in their hearts.
They are convinced that I have come from your presence,
and they have fully believed that you sent me to represent you. John 17:8

Jesus’s ears were opened to listen and obey the voice of His Father. Our ears must be pierced by this voice to make us disciples and teachers of the truth. Hearing the voice of heaven is so important for you to enter into Throne Room Prayer.

God Often Speaks in Pictures, not just Words

This is critical to understand. God’s language is parables, pictures, visions and dreams. God doesn’t just use words to communicate with us.

​1 Now the boy Samuel ministered to the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was rare in those days; there was no widespread revelation. 2 And it came to pass at that time, while Eli was lying down in his place, and when his eyes had begun to grow so dim that he could not see, 3 and before the lamp of God went out in the tabernacle of the LORD where the ark of God was, and while Samuel was lying down, 4 that the LORD called Samuel. And he answered, “Here I am!” 5 So he ran to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.”
And he said, “I did not call; lie down again.” And he went and lay down.
6 Then the LORD called yet again, “Samuel!”
So Samuel arose and went to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” He answered, “I did not call, my son; lie down again.” 7 (Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, nor was the word of the LORD yet revealed to him.)
8 And the LORD called Samuel again the third time. So he arose and went to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you did call me.”
Then Eli perceived that the LORD had called the boy. 9 Therefore Eli said to Samuel, “Go, lie down; and it shall be, if He calls you, that you must say, ‘Speak, LORD, for Your servant hears.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
10 Now the LORD came and stood and called as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!”
And Samuel answered, “Speak, for Your servant hears.” 1 Samuel 3:1-10

​1 Thus the Lord GOD showed me: Behold, a basket of summer fruit. 2 And He said, “Amos, what do you see?”
So I said, “A basket of summer fruit.”
Then the LORD said to me:
“The end has come upon My people Israel;
I will not pass by them anymore. Amos 8:1-2

When Jesus taught the people, He always taught with Parables.

³⁴ All these things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables; and without a parable He did not speak to them, Matthew 13:34

Interpreting pictures doesn’t come overnight. It takes time to develop our understanding of even the fringes of His ways. Jesus’ very own disciples didn’t understand the things that He taught until later.

²⁹ His disciples said, “At last you’re speaking to us clearly and not using veiled speech and metaphors! John 16:29

Keep an open spirit to new ways of listening to His voice. It’s so important to open the lens of your heart to receive. When you do, the Spirit of understand will begin to shine in with the revelation light that God wants to give us.

Because of this, since I first heard about your strong faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and your tender love toward all his devoted ones, ¹⁶ my heart is always full and overflowing with thanks to God for you as I constantly remember you in my prayers. ¹⁷ I pray that the Father of glory, the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, would impart to you the riches of the Spirit of wisdom and the Spirit of revelation to know him through your deepening intimacy with him.
¹⁸ I pray that the light of God will illuminate the eyes of your imagination, flooding you with light, until you experience the full revelation of the hope of his calling —that is, the wealth of God’s glorious inheritances that he finds in us, his holy ones! Ephesians 1:15-18

Because dreams and visions are so common among God’s people, it’s important to address them at this point. Part of the end time strategy of God is to pour of His Holy Spirit upon His sons and daughters. As a result, they will prophecy, have visions, and dream dreams.

¹⁷ ‘This is what I will do in the last days —I will pour out my Spirit on everybody and cause your sons and daughters to prophesy, and your young men will see visions, and your old men will experience dreams from God. Acts 2:17

These dreams will reveal the wisdom and purpose of God not only for you, but for nations, churches, and individuals. Many of God’s servants in the Bible were dreamers: Abrham, Jacob, Joseph, David, Daniel, Ezekiel, Joseph (the husband of Mary), John, and Paul. Even ungodly people received dreams that were from God: Pharaoh, Nebuchadnezzar, Herod, and others.

Trust The Holy Spirit To Speak To You.

The ability to hear what God is speaking comes directly through the supernatural revelation given to us by the Holy Spirit.

⁹ This is why the Scriptures say:
Things never discovered or heard of before,
things beyond our ability to imagine —
these are the many things God has in store
for all his lovers.
¹⁰ But God now unveils these profound realities to us by the Spirit. Yes, he has revealed to us his inmost heart and deepest mysteries through the Holy Spirit, who constantly explores all things. 1 Corinthians 2:9-10

We must learn to trust that what He’s done for others He’ll do for us! It’s faith that opens our ears and keeps us alert to hear His voice.

But the true Shepherd walks right up to the gate, ³ and because the gatekeeper knows who he is, he opens the gate to let him in. And the sheep recognize the voice of the true Shepherd, for he calls his own by name and leads them out, for they belong to him. John 10:2-3

Believe that God will speak, wait to hear Him, and be ready to act. He’ll give you your prayer assignment, and He may even cause a person’s face or name to flash before you. This is God’s way of alerting you to pray for them.

¹⁰ Living in Damascus was a believer named Ananias. The Lord spoke to him in a vision, calling his name. “Ananias.”
“Yes, Lord,” Ananias answered.
The Lord said, “Go at once to the street called Abundance and look for a man from Tarsus named Saul. You will find him at Judah’s house. While he was praying, he saw in a supernatural vision a man named Ananias coming to lay hands upon him to restore his sight.”
¹³ “But Lord,” Ananias replied, “many have told me about his terrible persecution of those in Jerusalem who are devoted to you. ¹⁴ In fact, the high priest has authorized him to seize and imprison all those in Damascus who call on your name.” Acts 9:10-14

Be ready for your faith to open your ears! Whenever God speaks, it’s always incredible! His words release such life and power. And because He’s wise, He’ll overlook what we want to hear to tell us what we need to hear instead. Give God all your “what ifs” and simply trust and obey. He’s all-wise and all loving. He doesn’t have to explain everything He does or everything He tells us. We just need to humble our hearts and hear Him out. As we follow Him, eventually our understanding will catch up.

⁵ Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying: ⁶ “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter?” says the LORD. “Look, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel! Jeremiah 18:5-6

Never argue with the wisdom of God!

Listen For His Voice Through Others

God has made us dependent upon others to grow in Christ. And He raises up Christian leaders to point us to Himself. We’ve been instructed to listen to them as they’ve been commissioned to care for our souls.

³⁰ So Philip ran to catch up. As he drew closer he overheard the man reading from the scroll of Isaiah the prophet. Philip asked him, “Sir, do you understand what you’re reading?”
³¹ The man answered, “How can I possibly make sense of this without someone explaining it to me?” So he invited Philip up into his chariot to sit with him. Acts 8:30-31

And they’ve been placed in leadership to help interpret the ways of God. You’ll find that, time after time, you’ll hear the voice of God speaking the very thing you need to hear through them and others He send your way. None of us are “know it all’s” in God’s Kingdom. We need each other.

God Speaks Through Everyday Circumstances

Be careful not to over-spiritualize how God will speak. I once accidentally deleted an email I intended to send. Afterwards, I understood that my reply wouldn’t have been God’s heart for that person and was not filled with Jesus. God was trying to tell me not to send it, and I realized afterwards that God saved me from a lot of grief by that one seemingly accidental deletion. God will speak through the natural happenings of our lives.

 

²⁰ Wisdom’s praises are sung in the streets
and celebrated far and wide.
²¹ Yet wisdom’s song is not always heard in the halls of higher learning.
But in the hustle and bustle of everyday life
its lyrics can always be heard above the din of the crowd.
You will hear wisdom’s warning as she preaches courageously
to those who stop to listen:
²² “Foolish ones, how much longer will you cling to your deception?
How much longer will you mock wisdom,
cynical scorners who fight the facts? Proverbs 1:20-22

Benefits Of Listening TO God

Ponder this list of benefits that come from listening to God. You might want to read them aloud more than once. Meditate on each one until your heart is stirred and begins to hear His whisper.

·      Manifested sense of His nearness

^6–7 I lie awake each night thinking of you
and reflecting on how you help me like a father.
I sing through the night under your splendor-shadow,
offering up to you my songs of delight and joy!
⁸ With passion I pursue and cling to you.
Because I feel your grip on my life,
I keep my soul close to your heart. Psalms 63:7-8

·      Supernatural Strength

31 But those who wait for Yahweh’s grace
will experience divine strength.
They will rise up on soaring wings and fly like eagles,
run their race without growing weary,
and walk through life without giving up. Isaiah 40:31

·      Direction and guidance Isaiah 30:21

²¹ When you turn to the right or turn to the left,
you will hear his voice behind you to guide you, saying,
“This is the right path; follow it.” Isaiah 30:21

·      Courage Psalm 27:4

⁴ Here’s the one thing I crave from God,
the one thing I seek above all else:
I want the privilege of living with him every moment in his house,
finding the sweet loveliness of his face,
filled with awe, delighting in his glory and grace.
I want to live my life so close to him
that he takes pleasure in my every prayer. Psalms 27:4

·      Blessing Isaiah 30:18

¹⁸ For this reason the Lord is still waiting to show his favour to you
so he can show you his marvellous love.
He waits to be gracious to you.
He sits on his throne ready to show mercy to you.
For Yahweh is the Lord of justice,
faithful to keep his promises.
Overwhelmed with bliss are all
who will entwine their hearts in him,
waiting for him to help them. Isaiah 30:18

·      Satisfaction Psalm 63:5

⁵ I overflow with praise when I come before you,
for the anointing of your presence satisfies me like nothing else.
You are such a rich banquet of pleasure to my soul. Psalms 63:5

·      Wisdom Psalm 90:12

¹² Help us to remember that our days are numbered,
and help us to interpret our lives correctly.
Set your wisdom deeply in our hearts
so that we may accept your correction. Psalms 90:12

·      Prosperity Joshua 1:8, Psalm 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

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

·      Revelation to bless others Isaiah 50:4

⁴ The Lord Yahweh has equipped me
with the anointed, skilful tongue of a teacher—
to know how to speak a timely word to the weary.
Morning by morning, he awakens my heart.
He opens my ears to hear his voice, to be trained to teach. Isaiah 50:4

It’s great to discuss every morning the dreams we had the night before. Listening to God and doing what He says is the passion and goal of our lives.

All we need to do is to have a hearing ear and tender heart to obey all that He says. Let it be your heart cry today. Imagine how your life can be changed by hearing His voice and following Him. Jesus did not say that His sheep can hear His voice, He said they do hear His voice and recognize that it is Him.

The Basics

1.  Keep your heart right with God. Come into His presence clean and pure. You must leave all bitterness and unforgiveness with Him. Then you can enter with joy of the Lord in your heart

¹⁸ Yet if I had closed my eyes to my sin,
the Lord God would have closed his ears to my prayer. Psalms 66:18

¹ Truly Yahweh’s arm is not too powerless to save you
nor his ear too deaf to hear.
² Rather, your sinful deeds have built a barrier
between you and your God.
Your sins have made God turn his face from you
so that he does not hear your prayers. Isaiah 59:1-2

2.  Enter with a thankful heart.  Unrelenting gratitude for what God has done for you is the secret to a powerful prayer life. King David made many mistakes, but he praised God all the way through his personal “wilderness” until he got to the other side. Cultivate a grateful heart and come before Him with thanksgiving.

3.  Admit your weakness. This is how we grow. God uses our weakness as a platform for His strength. It is ok in God’s Kingdom to be weak. The Lord loves to be our strength. He becomes for us our wisdom and our salvation. 30 For it is not from man that we draw our life but from God as we are being joined to Jesus, the Anointed One. And now he is our God-given wisdom, our virtue, our holiness, and our redemption. 1 Corinthians 1:30. Scripture says that the weakest among us will be like David. 8 In that day the LORD will defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; the one who is feeble among them in that day shall be like David, and the house of David shall be like God, like the Angel of the LORD before them. Zechariah 12:8

4.   Focus on God’s power to meet your need. Just believe that God is able to answer your cry and supply your need. 19 I am convinced that my God will fully satisfy every need you have, for I have seen the abundant riches of glory revealed to me through the Anointed One, Jesus Christ! Philippians 4:19

That’s faith!

5.  Let nothing keep you from giving yourself to prayer.

It’s your lifeline to heaven. Be addicted! Be Fervent! Become a walking house of prayer; prayer on two legs!

Pray this today:  Lord Jesus, you are the kind and gentle Shepherd who leads your flock. You have promised me that your sheep will hear your voice – and I am one of Your sheep. Speak to me, Lord, any way you want to. Cause my heart to know Your voice and to hear all that You desire to speak to me. I will read Your Word and apply it to my heart, listening daily for Your voice to guide me. Thank you for every word that You speak to me, for Your word is truth and Life. In the name of Jesus. Amen!

 

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