Day 10 – Place Yourself in a position to Hear

WEEK TWO FOCUS… CREATING SPACE FOR HIS VOICE

The Bible says that when we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we are given a deposit of the Holy Spirit as a promise of what is yet to come. The presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives helps us to hear clearly. With the Holy Spirit living inside of us, He will guide us to pray and hear from God according to His will.

The Bible says the Holy Spirit not only helps us to pray, but helps us to discern what God is revealing to us.

“For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets. 11 No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit.” 1 Cor 2:10-11 NLT

With the Holy Spirit, we receive the help we need to pray and to discern what our heavenly Father is saying to us. We know that God is sovereign. He speaks in different ways at different times. Our faith must always be in God and not in a certain method.

Learning to discern God’s voice takes effort on our part. We can get so involved in the affairs of this natural world that we forget to listen. The Lord wants us to take the time to listen as we open our hearts to hear. He wants us to become increasingly familiar with His voice as our relationship deepens with Him.

The more often we meet with God in prayer and talk to Him about the concerns on our heart, the clearer His voice becomes.

The Bible instructs us to make a concerted effort to spend time with the lord, as a result placing ourselves in a position to hear from Him.

Jeremiah 29:12-13 Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. NKJV

We can’t make demands on God, but we can ask, seek and knock, and the Bible promises that God will open the door. God will reveal Himself to those who humbly seek Him.

God wants us to acknowledge Him in our lives…

Prov 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths. NKJV

What does it mean to acknowledge? The Webster’s dictionary tells us it is to admit the existence, reality, or truth of or express gratitude for.

The Bible says the Holy Spirit not only helps us to pray, but helps us to discern what God is revealing to us.

If we acknowledge a friend, we talk to him, express our appreciation for him, and recognize his presence in our lives. Imagine your friends not acknowledging your presence when you are together. You try to talk to them, and they completely ignore you.

In fact, they talk right over you as if you were not even there. That’s how we treat the Lord if we are not acknowledging Him moment by moment in our lives. If we are not recognizing God’s presence in our daily lives, it is little wonder we are having trouble hearing from Him.

Matt 3:16-17 After his baptism, as Jesus came up out of the water, the heavens were opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and settling on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy.” NLT

Jesus did not begin His ministry until he heard the voice of His Father. Before we do anything in our life, ministry, calling, business… We must be sure that we hear the voice of the Father before we do anything.

God wants to remove every obstacle in our lives that hinder His voice.

1 Kings 19:11-13 “Go out and stand before me on the mountain,” the Lord told him. And as Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper. 13 When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And a voice said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” NLT

God wanted to speak to Elijah, so He first sent basic forces that obeyed His command.

The wind, earthquake, fire were not sent to inform him or instruct him. God sent the strong wind to break everything in the way that could stop Elijah from hearing the voice of God. Than an earthquake to shake loose any obstruction. The fire was sent to burn away any blockage left from the wind or the earthquake. All these came to Elijah to prepare him to hear the still small voice of God. Are you positioning yourself to hear God’s voice? 

- Pastor Sam Hinn