day 8: it's not hard to hear god's voice

READ IT
John 16:12-14
 “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you.”

TAKE IT TO HEART
Jesus told His disciples that once He was gone, the Spirit of truth would come. Note in these verses what God’s Spirit of truth would do:

  • Guide you into all truth.
  • Speak what he hears.
  • Tell you what is yet to come.
  • Glorify Jesus because he will receive information from Jesus to make known to you.

Prayer is much more than learning how to speak to God; it’s also learning how to hear from God. And since God already knows anything you could possibly tell Him, which part of prayer is more important?

Hearing from God!

It’s not that hard to hear God’s voice. He made you and He knows how to communicate with you. God gave you ears to process sound waves and to interact with others while living on earth. Your ears are for listening, but your mind and heart are for hearing.

Think about that. How often do your ears trick you? Have you ever misunderstood something you thought you heard? Often we don’t hear what’s actually being said because we hear through filters—histories, personalities, philosophies, ethnicities, nationalities, theologies and a lot of other kinds of “ies.”

But God knows best how to by-pass all those “ies” and speak in ways you can hear Him. He skips your ears and speaks directly to your heart. Seldom (maybe never) will you hear Him with your actual human ears. But that’s okay because your real center of understanding isn't found in your ear canal, it's found deep inside of your mind and your heart.
 
And that is where God dwells.

PRAY FOR THESE THINGS TODAY:
Spend deliberate time this week listening, then recording what you hear God say. This week’s prayer points will be presented in forms of questions to help you cultivate this practice.
  • Lord, how do You want to prepare my mind and heart for the upcoming election? What can I do to best serve You when I enter the ballot box?
  • Which of my neighbors, co-workers, bleacher companions need an invitation to ATM (At the Movies on October 27)? Please give me the opportunity to share an invitation.
  • We’ve all been called to follow Jesus (Matthew 16:24-26) and to go into all the world (Matthew 28:19-20). We don’t have to pray about that. But we do get to ask God where He’d like for us to go this next year. Check out this webpage and ask God where He wants you to go as you follow Him.