It's Not that Hard to Hear God's Voice Part 4

This is part 4 of what I've decided now is a 5-part series on learning how to hear the voice of God. As I was preparing to publish this post, I came across this youtube message by pastor Mike Todd. In it, he is teaching 11 ways God speaks to us, several of his 11 ways are the same as the 8 ways I've discussed in this series. If you'd like to be inspired by Pastor Mike Todd, you can listen to his message here:

 How Do You Hear God's Voice? 

Thus far I've discussed 4 of the 8 ways to hear God's voice:

1. God speaks to your heart, not your ears.

2. God speaks through His Word, the Bible.

3. Obedience is the secret to having an ongoing conversation with God.

4. God communicates with us through other people. 

In this post I'm going to talk about these next 3 ways God speaks to us:

5. God speaks through praise and worship.

6. God speaks through dreams and visions.

7. Cultivate an attitude of gratitude if you want to hear God's voice.

You'll have to come back next week to discover the 8th way God speaks. :) 

Let's get started...

God speaks through praise and worship

God will speak directly to your heart through praise and worship. Fill your ears with praise music and let the voice of God speak truth to your heart. The words of worship music are filled with Scripture and with truth. When those words are put with music, they reach beyond our minds and into our hearts. "Music is the language of the soul." 

When fighting spiritual battles, create a "battle songs" playlist on your favorite music platform. A friend shared her battle songs playlist with me, and as I played those truth-songs into the empty spaces in my day, I started embracing the truth of my situation. It wasn't long before I made a battle list of my own.

This is one of the best ways to fight spiritual battles. I cannot tell you how often I jump on my bike and shout to the words of Glorious Unfolding by Steven Curtis Chapman

....take a rest from the fight, don't try to figure it out, just listen to what I'm whispering to your heart...

And then sing right along with Lauren Daigle in Rescue.

...you are not hopeless, you have been broken, your innocence stolen, I hear you whisper underneath your breath, I hear your SOS, your SOS, I will send out an army to find you in the middle of the darkness...

One Sunday I met a friend from out of town who called me at the last minute to let me know she'd be visiting our church that morning. She literally wept throughout the entire worship portion of our service. After church we said our goodbyes, and the next week I received an email from her telling me that she fully intended to take her life that weekend, but that after worshipping with us Sunday morning, she knew God was with her--and that she would make it no matter what. 

Another of my favorite worship songs is “I Speak Jesus.” My husband had the privilege of meeting one of the writers of this song, Dustin Smith. He heard the story behind it's writing. This is what Dustin told him. He was leading a songwriters' conference when the group he was working with was just about to finish. They decided to see if they could come up with one more song, and right as they got started, another songwriter poked his head in their door. Dustin asked him to speak a word over his group and the friend simply raised his arms and spoke, "JESUS!" Then he walked away.

The people in that group began to express the power of the Name of Jesus, and the song flowed forth.

Take a minute right now to worship as you listen to this song! "I Speak Jesus" 

Want to hear the voice of God? Spend some time in praise and worship! 

God speaks through dreams and visions

Oh my friends, this is such a sweet way to hear the powerful, loving voice of God. On several occasions I've had the privilege of hearing God's voice through dreams (stories that play out in my sleep ministering healing to my soul) and visions (dream-like scenarios God gives me when I'm awake that ministers truth to my soul). 

I wish I could tell you how to schedule these, but they are given at the good pleasure of God. I've received them in seasons when my spirit was tormented by fear or trouble or unbelief. In each situation God spoke supernaturally to the deepest parts of my innermost being with a story or dream-experience.

This is always an interesting and exciting way that God speaks to us. I don’t even have to explain it because you will know when He does this to you. Many prophets dreams and visions are recorded in the Old Testament and the entire book of Revelation is recorded from John's vision on the Isle of Patmos. 

Just remember this, when God speaks to you through dreams and visions His message will always line up with His Word. If you think God’s spoken to you in a dream or vision it’s a good idea to make sure that what God said aligns with Scripture.  Share your experience with a trusted Christ follower who has studied the Bible and can help you make sense of your experience and God’s Word.

Cultivate an Attitude of Gratitude If You Want to Hear God's Voice

 If you go through life always looking at your glass half empty, you will miss the voice of God. Take a look at Romans 1:21

 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to Him, but their thinking became futile, and their foolish hearts were darkened.

When you get too busy, too burdened, too full of pride to thank God for His faithfulness and love, you will find it hard to hear his voice. Make it a practice starting today to cultivate an attitude of gratitude.

Tom and I watched a movie a while back called, About Time. In it the main character discovered that the men in his family could time travel when they turned 21. In an interesting and fun way, the movie ended up making a powerful statement and that is:

If you take time to look for the good in every relationship, situation, surprise and even mundane, you will find it and your life will be richer for it.

God made us to receive because He is a GIVER.

When we learn to receive humbly, and graciously, we will be able to hear His voice, see His work, and even participate with Him in bringing His kingdom to earth as it is in heaven. You will be amazed at how much God has to say when you keep the lines of communication between you and Him open through your grateful spirit.

Stay tuned! In our next blog post I'll wrap this series up by sharing the 8th way God speaks to us. It's so powerful I'm going to give it its own space.