5 Ways to Practice Hearing God’s Voice
Before you can hear God’s voice on behalf of others, you must develop a personal, intimate relationship with Him, in which you have learned to hear His voice for yourself. We do this by studying scripture, praying and asking the Lord for revelation, and taking time to wait on Him to speak to us. We must learn to practice hearing God’s voice!
As He speaks, it will take time for you to learn discernment between what is His voice, and what are your own thoughts and imaginations, as well as attempted distractions and lies from the enemy.
For the Christian, learning to hear the voice of God in your life is absolutely the most important and beneficial thing you can do. Here are five activities you can do to position yourself to begin hearing God’s voice.
Keep a Listening Journal
When I was new to hearing God’s voice regularly — not only on rare or “special” occasions — keeping a listening journal was one of the most helpful things I was taught to do. As it takes time dedicated to learning to hear, the journaling process helps you track your journey along the way. It also allows you to let other, more mature believers read things you are unsure of, to help you discern whether it was God you heard or not. The truth is, we all miss it sometimes.
Now that I have been hearing God’s voice regularly for many years, spending time praying and writing in my listening journal is still the most intimate time I have with the Lord, where I am able to press into Him more and to hear Him speak about issues of life, leadership, and ministry. Anytime I have one of those “I wonder…” questions, it usually goes into my listening journal, and it is always time well spent.
To keep a listening journal, get something to write on and something to write with, then simply ask God questions. I write my questions to God at the top of the page and use parentheses or “//” to mark when it is my words and thoughts, and then use the rest of the page to write down every impression or thought or vision I feel like God is using to answer that question. Sometimes the answer “bubbles up” immediately. Other times I will wait for a long time, but eventually an answer will come. As one question answered leads to another, I continue writing down my conversation with God until I am out of time or have exhausted that topic of conversation.
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What I have found is that God is eager to speak to us and help us live the Christian life, so this is a great way to let the Holy Spirit disciple you and lead your own Christian walk. In fact, many times when I am just craving some intimacy with God, but don’t have a pressing question to ask, I will just start my journal with, “Lord, what do you want to talk to me about today?” These are often some of the most profound things He speaks to me.
A listening journal is also a great way to keep a record of your journey with the Holy Spirit, to look back on and see your personal growth in Him.
The Name Game
For many people, a listening journal may sound like an exercise in futility. I have discipled various people in the practice, and it is always a long process to get started with an activity like that as it takes time to train yourself to hear God’s voice clearly and consistently, without your own thoughts and preconceptions getting in the way. Some people have sat for long periods of time with a blank page in front of them, not actually knowing what to do.
The name game is a little bit easier, and is a good starter exercise to begin hearing the voice of God. Here’s what you do: get into a setting where you can spend time in silent prayer, a place without distraction, then simply ask the Lord to tell you what He calls you or how He sees you. Then wait on Him to answer.
As people I know have walked through this simple process, God has always been faithful to tell them something very personal and uplifting. For one person who did not have a good relationship with his dad, God simply called him “My son.” For another who dealt with rejection and not sure how people saw her, God said, “Beloved.” God not only spoke clearly to them, but touched them deeply with His love in what He said. Since God wants to be our biggest encourager, we can actually go back to Him again and again asking Him how He sees us or what He wants to say about us, and He will always have something sweet to say.
Again, this is a very simple process, but it can still take some time to hear what God speaks. Though everyone I know who has engaged in this activity have heard God answer, it has not always been immediate, and in some cases have taken weeks before they were sure it was God. Just remember, God’s promise is that we can hear His voice. However, just like tuning an old radio with the manual tuning knob, it can sometimes take a lot of work to get clearly on the desired station. Once you can hear God answer this simple question pretty easily, it can always become a good starting point for deeper question and answer times with God.
One neat story I can share about this activity is one time, when I was on staff at a local church in Texas, our Senior Pastor took all of our community group leaders through this activity. For some the answer came quickly, and for others took time, as is always the case. In that group was a husband and wife team who began praying together for this answer. The wife heard what God called her almost immediately. She then began praying for her husband, and she heard the answer for what God called her husband as well, and wrote it down secretly. It was, however, another two weeks before he heard the answer for himself. Yet when he did finally hear it, it was the same thing their spouse had heard on their behalf two weeks before. How’s that for confirmation?
Treasure Hunting
Treasure hunting has become a world-wide “game” in many charismatic circles of Christianity, especially young adults who have come to learn that they can hear God’s voice and He will lead them into plenty of opportunity to minister to people and see God do awesome things. Another word for treasure hunting in this case would be, “Prophetic Evangelism.”
This can be an individual practice, but is a lot more fun when you do it in small groups of 2-4 people. The premise is this: You (and your friends) sit down in a room with a notepad and pray. You ask God to show you a place you should go to and other clues such as tattoos, clothing, jewelry, or other things that would lead to a specific person. You write down the “clues” He gives you, then you set out looking for God’s treasure.
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For example, God may give you a picture of a Starbucks sign in your mind’s eye. As you pray about who you should meet at Starbucks, He then tells you “red dress, black necklace.” You would then write those things down and head to Starbucks, to find God’s treasure. (Don’t forget to pray for words of knowledge, as to what God wants to say or do when you find them, too!)
It may be awkward at first, telling them, “God told me to come find you,” but as the Lord reveals further how you should minister to them, you will get past that quickly.
I have been on various treasure hunts, both in the U.S. and abroad, looking to see if I heard God speak clearly. Sometimes I miss it and try again. Other times, I have had some good times of sharing the love of Christ and prayer with people who need it.
Ask God About The Person Next to You
How much of your day is spent near people you don’t know very well? It may in a check out line at the grocery store, waiting to order food for lunch, sitting in a waiting area of the hospital or car wash, talking to a sales person, or sitting on an airplane.
Why not make some spiritual use of that time and ask God for a word of knowledge for that person. They may be shocked when you look at them and ask, “Is your daughter sick?” If the answer is yes, then you have a perfect opportunity to tell them how you knew that, and then pray with them for their child. If the answer is no, you can still use it to share your faith but saying, “oh, sorry. It’s just that I’m a Christian and I’m trying to learn to hear how God speaks to us. I guess I missed it this time. Are you a Christian?”
Serve on a Ministry Team
I know to include this may sound a bit out of place, but if I’m honest, one of the best places to learn to hear God speak is when you are actively engaged in loving on other people and seeking to serve them in one-on-one ministry. Unless you are one of those few people who are happy and loving twenty-four hours a day, serving on a ministry team will require you to hear God’s voice, and find your love, strength and abilities in His leading.
This may be serving long-term, on the ministry team in your church, or by serving on a short-term mission trip. My own ministry in Uganda and Kenya hosts various teams throughout the year for teaching and training in Spirit-led ministry.
I believe that serving on a ministry team can also offer one of the safest place to practice hearing without fear of rejection or intimidation. Though it isn’t always the case, it should be that as believers in the body together we encourage one another to keep trying to hear God more clearly, rather than bring one another down when someone misses it.
Do you have any other practical ways you have grown to hear God’s voice? I would love to hear them in the comments.
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© Anthony Scott Ingram 2019. All Rights Reserved.
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.”
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