“LORD, just make Your directions clear to me.”
How many times have we either heard others pray this way, or pray that way ourselves? I have recently wondered what our motives might be when we pray like this. Do we believe Almighty God to be inept at clarity? Or are we using God as the reason for our failure to follow? It’s as if we feel as though God does not communicate well enough with us in explaining what we’re to do, so if we fail it’s His fault.
If you do not yet have a clear understanding of God’s desired direction for you in a particular situation, stop, pray, wait, and listen. You must not move ahead of God’s timing or perfect plan. We can never discover the truth on our own; God reveals it by His Spirit to a listening child of God. Psalm 46:10 says, “Be still, and know that I Am God.” This purposed “stillness” permits us to listen for God’s direction and wisdom.
In 1 Kings 19:11-12, Elijah encounters God in a gentle whisper, not in a powerful wind, earthquake, or fire. This teaches us that God’s voice may come in subtle ways, and we need to be attentive and discerning to hear Him.
“. . . you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13). Wholehearted seeking and listening to God is essential for a deep and meaningful connection with Him.
Listening for God’s voice may require persistence and confidence in His timing.
“After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper.” (1 Kings 19:12)
Here, we see that God did not speak through the powerful spectacle of an earthquake or fire, but through a mellow whisper. Sometimes, God’s voice will not come in the compelling or decipherable manners but in the calm and quietness of our hearts.
Listening for God’s voice requires that we nurture a sensitivity to His whispers and soft counsels, accustoming our ears and hearts to His soft, gentle voice. Within the noise and troubles of life, we must establish room for inner quietness and calm so we may unquestionably hear the still soft voice of God directing our way.
God’s design in man’s brain enables us to learn to listen. What He has placed in us has been discovered by medical science. This has been referred to as R.A.S. or reticular activating system. The way it works is when we deem it is necessary or important for us to hear something, we subconsciously listen for it, such as the soft cry of your baby while you are sleeping. When you determine that you truly want to hear God’s voice, you eventually tap into His sound. Beloved, it is vital to your Christian Walk that you hear God. As Henry Blackaby stated in Experiencing God, “If a Christian does not know when God is speaking, he is in trouble at the heart of his Christian life.”
“Listen and hear My voice; pay attention and hear what I say.” (Isaiah 28:23)
God invites us to listen on purpose and gladly hear His voice, urging us to be aware, and take our listening seriously. He requests that we be alert, sensitive, and quick to respond to His counsel and directions.
By aggressively listening and giving credence to God’s voice, we set ourselves to line up with His will and intentions for that situation. Our positive response to His voice reveals our love and enthusiasm for Him, thus permitting us to experience the richness of His blessed signs of approval.
The Bible is the Word of God, and reading it is a way to hear His teachings and commands. “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17). This prompts us that all of God’s Word is God-breathed therefore is valuable for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and instructing in righteousness. “Put your ear to the ground of God’s Word and listen to the rumble of His faithfulness coming.” (John Piper)
Reading with intentionality assists you to pull something from the written Word, whereas listening as the Spirit takes you deeper in the intent of the Word helps you get into it; we take it in.
“Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6). Listening to God rightly involves desiring His will and trusting in His direction more readily than banking on just your own understanding.
“He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” (Matthew 13:9)
“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” (Revelation 3: 6)
The Bible instructs that listening for God’s voice is a self-motivated and manifold means that may involve prayer, reading Scripture, meditation, abiding, pursuing God’s will, obedience, sensitivity, and patience. If you want to hear God’s voice and find His will, you must purposely take the time to develop a deep, personal, intimate love relationship with your LORD Jesus Christ and bring your life in line with His Word and example.
In all my counselling, prayer and listening to the Spirit is vital for victory in my counselee’s life. Listen, God Speaks!