Ask me Anything | Week 3

How do I Hear God’s Voice?

God is always speaking. Hearing Him is less about mastering a method and more about cultivating a relationship.

Part 1: HEARING vs. LISTENING

Deuteronomy 6:4-5 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.

“Hear” = “shema” = to pay attention, understand, and put into action

*shema is also the Hebrew word for “obey” that we see in Exodus 19:5

Active listening is the practice of fully focusing on, understanding, and responding to a speaker rather than passively hearing their words. It requires eliminating distractions, withholding opinions, and engaging with the other person to build trust and ensure mutual understanding.

Part 2: 8 WAYS GOD SPEAKS

• God speaks in a quiet, small voice (1 Kings 19:11-12, 1 Samuel 3)
• God speaks through the nudging/feeling from the Holy Spirit (Psalm 40, Luke 4)

• God speaks through other people (2 Samuel 12)
  • (through books, worship songs, messages, conversations, prophetic words, etc.)

• God speaks through nature (Psalm 8:1-4, Matthew 6)

Psalm 8:1-4

O Lord, our Lord, your majestic name fills the earth!
  Your glory is higher than the heavens.

You have taught children and infants
    to tell of your strength,
silencing your enemies
    and all who oppose you.

When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers—
    the moon and the stars you set in place—

what are mere mortals that you should think about them,
    human beings that you should care for them?

“God speaks through nature similarly to how a painter speaks through a painting or a musician speaks through a composition. When you’re looking at something created, it speaks volumes about who made it, and it invites your response.” -Nathan Finochio

 

• God speaks through the Bible (John 1:1, Psalm 119:130)

 

Lectio divina (divine reading)***

 

• God speaks through the supernatural (Acts 9, Exodus 3-4)

(through dreams, visions, miracles, signs, etc.)

• God speaks through our circumstances (Deuteronomy 8)

“Sometimes we become so committed to trying to make everything work out our way that we miss the very way that God has already spoken and shaped us for maturity through our unique circumstances. We believe, all too easily, that the grasses are greener in pastures where the Shepherd hasn’t led us.” -Nathan Finochio

 

• God speaks through our ordinary routines (Matthew 4:18-20)

Ora et labora (pray and work)

Listening to God is not separated from everyday life and tasks because God is heard in ordinary faithfulness.

God often confirms that He is speaking through multiple sources.

Part 3: LEARN TO BE SHEEP

God is always speaking! How do we tune out the other voices and listen for His?

John 10:1-5 (NLT) I tell you the truth, anyone who sneaks over the wall of a sheepfold, rather than going through the gate, must surely be a thief and a robber! ² But the one who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. ³ The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep recognize his voice and come to him. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. ⁴ After he has gathered his own flock, he walks ahead of them, and they follow him because they know his voice. ⁵ They won’t follow a stranger; they will run from him because they don’t know his voice.

• Get to know the Shepherd

A shepherd doesn’t usually drive sheep from behind like cattle. Instead, he often walks ahead and calls them, and they follow.

Sheep learn the voice of the shepherd through daily exposure

We don’t learn God’s voice by chasing experiences. We learn God’s voice by walking with Him.

• Recognize the Shepherd

A sheep doesn’t recognize the shepherd’s voice because it attended one lesson. Recognition develops through continual contact.

The greatest way we get to know the character of God is through the Bible, so we can’t  recognize His voice if we have not been reading His Word.

• Respond to the Shepherd

A sheep’s response isn’t based on understanding every word….but because it trusts the shepherd and recognizes his voice, the sheep will obey.

God’s voice becomes clearest to people who are willing to follow.

Psalm 23:1-4:

The Lord is my shepherd;
I have all that I need.

He lets me rest in green meadows;
He leads me beside peaceful streams.

He renews my strength.
He guides me along right paths,
bringing honor to his name.

Even when I walk
through the darkest valley,
I will not be afraid,
for you are close beside me.
Your rod and your staff
protect and comfort me.

Resources for further study: 

Discerning the Voice of God by Priscilla Shirer

Hearing God: Developing a Conversational Relationship with God by Dallas Willard

Hearing God by Nathan Finochio

Into the Quiet: Following Jesus in a World of Noise by John Mark Comer (coming this fall)

Is that Really You, God? by Loren Cunningham

The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence

The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer

***LECTIO DIVINA (Divine Reading)

Get your Bible and journal (remove all other distractions).

Choose a short passage from the Bible to read (could be a chapter or even a few verses).

Close your eyes and breathe out slowly. Prepare your heart and mind to hear from the Lord. Don’t speak or pray, but just calm yourself and listen.

 

1. Read: read the passage slowly. Then read it again, taking time to pause as the Holy Spirit brings certain words or phrases to your attention.
2. Reflect: read the passage again, reflecting on what stood out to you. Ask what God is trying to say to you. Write this down in your journal.
3. Respond/pray: pray how you think God is leading you based on what you’ve read.
4. Rest/contemplate: wait on God, go on a walk with him, journal, worship.