DISCIPLESHIP BASICS 101: HOW TO HEAR GOD’S VOICE

You hear this question asked all the time, you may have even asked yourself the same question …

“How do you hear God’s voice?”

I know I have! There are even times when I have asked myself to the Lord …

“Am I even hearing you properly?” Or “Did you really say that, God?”

People can go as far as questioning you whether you are even hearing God’s voice properly… in a condescending manner, to clarify. And if you’re like me, it can get frustrating. Sometimes, I just imagine, wouldn’t it be easier if I could go back in time to the Bible days and get to see Jesus, face-to-face? Then I could never question whether I could hear Him or not, because He is standing right in front of me, in the flesh, speaking directly to me.

BUT, we serve a God who takes care of all our matters, even before we think of them. God knew we would experience this issue, so what did He do, He sent His Spirit. The Holy Spirit gives us the fruits (characteristics) of Jesus, the gifts of Jesus but not just that but He is the mind of God. So whatever God is thinking, best believe the Holy Spirit can tell us. He is living right in us, talking to us.

Okay, this has already been a long enough introduction. Now, let’s get into the juiciness of it all, as this blog post will help you learn how you can hear God’s voice and the ways that He speaks, integrating a modern fashion of the way we communicate with one another… phones – text messages, voice notes/calls and FaceTime/video calls. Hopefully, learning it this way will help you remember how to practically hear God’s voice.

Let’s get to it!

Text messages

Advantages

• Stay in communication with someone whenever and wherever.
• Multi-task as you are doing something else you can still communicate with someone/multiple people.

Disadvantages

• The messages can be misinterpreted because you don’t know the person’s tone.
• However, that’s why you rely on your knowledge of and relationship with that person of how you know them to be, to relate their text to who they are.
• If you have misinterpreted a text, you rely on what you know about that person 

Hearing God: REVELATION OF THE WORD OF GOD

• The word of God is God-breathed (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
• So, to hear God’s voice it is through His very own words which is through His Word, the Bible.
• The word of God has many revelations/interpretations but just like text messages it can be misinterpreted.
• That is why it is important when you study the word of God you ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you the truth of the word of God. 
• And make sure that you get rid of all distractions and focus on what the Holy Spirit is revealing and interpreting to you through the word of God.
• Do not lean on your own understanding. Or make up your own interpretations to suit your own ideologies and opinions. 
• In the same way with text messaging, it is important to know who God is, so you can test the interpretation of the word to who He is. The Word does not contradict itself. 
• Lean on your relationship with God, of how you have learned and have acknowledged His character to be like.
• This will help you to hear God’s voice!

Voice notes

Advantages

• You can hear the person’s voice than text messaging them.
• You can hear the tone in their voice, so you are less likely to misinterpret what they are saying.
• You know the person’s voice because their voice is familiar to you.
• When someone voice notes you, you know that it is them, as you know how they sound like, you know how they speak, you know how they express themselves through voice diction, tone and emotion. 

Disadvantages

• Someone can text you, but it may not be their words. In the same way, this could happen through voice notes. However, it is trickier.
• So, you are hearing the person, and it sounds like them via their voice, but via their words it doesn’t. How do you distinguish their voice from the words?

Hearing God: HOW GOD’S VOICE SOUND LIKE

• In your head, there are 3 voices, yourself, God and the enemy. You have to use the spirit of discernment to differentiate between the three.
• What can also help you know which one is the voice of God is asking yourself which voice matches the word of God. 
• If you read the word of God, then this will help you know how God speaks. But not just that it will help you know how you speak and how the devil speaks based on your character.
• The devil = Father of lies comes to steal, kill and destroy, is the angel of darkness etc.
• You = the character of the flesh -> sin. 
• God’s voice will sound like you, but in the same way the devil’s voice will sound like you. 
• So, you’ve got to make sure that the voice of God sounds so familiar to you (1 Samuel 3:3-10). If you don’t it is so easy to misjudge God’s voice to your own thoughts or the devil’s.
• God’s voice should be so familiar to you that you can recognise it from when you’re in a noisy crowd to when you’re in your quiet time.
• It is important that God’s voice is familiar to you because if you can’t familiarise yourself with His voice then how can you listen to Him when He speaking to you, instructing you and calling you?
• When you are summoned by God, how will you answer “Here I am” lie Samuel, if you cannot hear nor listen to His voice?
• Well, don’t just pay attention to how the words are being said, but pay more attention to what is being said. And then you will be able to hear and discern God’s voice!
• And ask God to teach you His voice and to train your spirit so you can carry out your calling that He has summoned.

Facetime 

Advantages

• You don’t just see their messages, or hear their voice, but you get to physically see the person virtually.
• You can get to see the person’s face.
• You get to spend quality time with them.
• You get to see what the person is doing as though you are physically there with the person.
• You can speak to multiple people at a time, up to 32 people can be on a Facetime call (which is way more than on text message group chats).

Disadvantages

• It feels so real, yet unfortunately, you are not physically there with the person. 
• There’s only one form of contact and that is you can only speak to people who are Apple users. 
• Not the best video quality, you can disconnect.
• You can end up talking over one another.

Hearing God: GOD SPEAKS THROUGH MANY DIFFERENT WAYS

• The same way on Facetime where you can speak to multiple people at a time, God speaks to us through many ways. 
• But you can miss God speaking to you when you don’t spend quality time in His face. That is where you should spend the most screen time.
• And how do you do that by simply spending time with Him?
• God can speak to us through:
  • His Word (the Bible)
  • Some people have audibly heard the voice of God
  • Symbols and numbers
  • Other people
  • Music
  • Dreams, visions and prophecy
  • The Holy Spirit
  • Circumstances
  • Repeated instances
  • Prayer
  • Peace and your conviction
  • Miracles, signs and wonders

To hear God’s voice clearly you need to pause and listen to Him. In the same way, when you’re on Facetime you can talk over each other, but you end up missing what the other person said and therefore it is hard for you to reply. 

Similarly, with God, there is no point in spending time with Him, and you are the only one speaking. You end up easily missing what God is trying to say to you, such as His desires, plans, vision, instructions, calling, and purpose He has for you.

God speaks all the time, even in His silence He is speaking. But you think He isn’t speaking, but that’s because you haven’t stopped to listen to what He has to say.

God doesn’t just appear in those big grand spectacular ways, but He also appears in a still small voice. As simple as giving you comfort that is Him speaking to you that He is the source of all your comfort (2 Corinthians 1:3-5).

God is calling you! He is calling you to fulfil His plans here on earth. But are you even listening to Him to answer His call? Don’t leave God on voicemail by not learning how to hear His voice. Don’t hang up on Him, yet you know His voice, but you purposefully ignore the calling He has for you. Answer Him, by listening to what He has to say and obey Him. God doesn’t call the qualified, He qualifies the called.

Stay blessed,

Divine L.

Updated: 8 December 2022