HO DO I KNOW IF GOD IS SPEAKING TO ME?
QUESTIONS ABOUT PRAYER
NATURE OF GOD
Deuteronomy 30:20 Love the Lord your God, listen to His voice, and hold fast to Him.
Isaiah 30:21 Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”
1 Kings 19:11–12 Then a very strong wind blew… But the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind, there was an earthquake. But the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake, there was a fire. But the Lord was not in the fire. After the fire, there was a quiet, gentle voice.
Proverbs 3:6 Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he’s the one who will keep you on track.
Isaiah 30:21 Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”
1 Kings 19:11–12 Then a very strong wind blew… But the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind, there was an earthquake. But the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake, there was a fire. But the Lord was not in the fire. After the fire, there was a quiet, gentle voice.
Proverbs 3:6 Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he’s the one who will keep you on track.
Each of the four verses above states something profound about the nature of who God is. Each verse tells us in different ways that God is regularly speaking and that it is wise to listen to his voice. Prayer is not just about speaking to God. Prayer is also very much about listening to God. As much as we share our requests and thanksgiving with God, we should also pause, listen and allow time for God to speak back to us. God doesn’t speak with a booming megaphone from heaven. (Though he could!) Throughout Scripture, God whispered or spoke to hearts with a gentle voice. He whispers because he is close. God speaks to our heart because he dwells in our heart. And his words are always true, wise, and full of life.
To listen doesn’t mean we only listen with our ears. Listening to the voice of God is more an act of our hearts and minds. It requires quieting the other voices and urgencies of life so that we can be open and receptive to what God is placing on our heart. It may be a shift in our attitude or our way of thinking, or God may impress upon us a person he wants us to connect with or pray for, or a situation where he is leading us to intervene. Listening is a skill in the physical realm, but even more, a skill when it comes to the spiritual realm. It takes a level of spiritual maturity to quiet oneself and listen and respond to the voice of God. To the spiritually immature, this doesn’t make sense, but over time and many steps of faith, a life without listening and responding to the voice of God doesn’t make sense.
One frequent question in relation to listening and hearing the voice of God in your own life is how to know if God is actually speaking to you or if those words or thoughts are coming from yourself. Picture yourself speaking on the phone with someone you’ve known for many years. Maybe it is a spouse, sibling, parent, best friend...etc, but the key is that you know their voice, their mannerisms, and how they speak. It would be impossible for someone else to call you and try to impersonate them, simply because you know them too well, even down to the tiny inflections of their voice. This is also true in a spiritual sense. Over time and through continued spiritual growth and maturity, we can know the shepherd’s voice so intimately that a counterfeit voice (or our own voice) is easily distinguished from what is coming from God and what is coming from another point of origin. This recognition takes time, but soon we can discern what is authentic from what is not. God’s voice always aligns with his word. And God’s voice always brings a sense of supernatural peace to our spirit. When we intimately know God, we know when he is speaking, and we are guided by his voice.
To listen doesn’t mean we only listen with our ears. Listening to the voice of God is more an act of our hearts and minds. It requires quieting the other voices and urgencies of life so that we can be open and receptive to what God is placing on our heart. It may be a shift in our attitude or our way of thinking, or God may impress upon us a person he wants us to connect with or pray for, or a situation where he is leading us to intervene. Listening is a skill in the physical realm, but even more, a skill when it comes to the spiritual realm. It takes a level of spiritual maturity to quiet oneself and listen and respond to the voice of God. To the spiritually immature, this doesn’t make sense, but over time and many steps of faith, a life without listening and responding to the voice of God doesn’t make sense.
One frequent question in relation to listening and hearing the voice of God in your own life is how to know if God is actually speaking to you or if those words or thoughts are coming from yourself. Picture yourself speaking on the phone with someone you’ve known for many years. Maybe it is a spouse, sibling, parent, best friend...etc, but the key is that you know their voice, their mannerisms, and how they speak. It would be impossible for someone else to call you and try to impersonate them, simply because you know them too well, even down to the tiny inflections of their voice. This is also true in a spiritual sense. Over time and through continued spiritual growth and maturity, we can know the shepherd’s voice so intimately that a counterfeit voice (or our own voice) is easily distinguished from what is coming from God and what is coming from another point of origin. This recognition takes time, but soon we can discern what is authentic from what is not. God’s voice always aligns with his word. And God’s voice always brings a sense of supernatural peace to our spirit. When we intimately know God, we know when he is speaking, and we are guided by his voice.