There are general and specific wills of God. Of course, everyone wants to hear the “specific” voice of God. Every individual wants to know and hear what the Lord wants specifically for us.
However, we want to hear a specific word from God at different times and for specific situations without hearing the “general” will of God every day. If we are not accustom to how He speaks on a daily bases, and we’re not in a habit of meeting with Him and hearing from Him on a regular bases, it’s going to be much more difficult to hear those specific words from God when making decisions that are important in our lives.
When we value something, then we give time to that. So, we need to value His voice. Ask yourself this question: How much time do you give to God daily in hearing His voice? Some will be embarrassed by their answer. So, how do we hear God’s voice?
We Set an Appointment
Exodus 19:10 – Then the LORD said to Moses, “Go to the people and sanctify them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their clothes. (Verse 11) “And let them be ready the third day. For on the third day the LORD will come down upon Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. (God is setting an appointed time to meet with the people.) (Verse 19) And when the blast of the trumpet sounded long and became louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him by voice.
God comes to a prepared atmosphere. When we look through the Bible at the times people had encounters with God, there was a preparation before that encounter.
Think about your personal house of God you attend. There is a lot of preparation that takes place before the people came. Think about how odd it would be if no one greeted us at the door; or you go to drop your child off and there are no children’s church or nursery attendants; and then came in the sanctuary and no one was set up to sing and lead in worship; no ushers; no bulletins; and the preacher was just standing at the front of the building, but didn’t say anything.
Believe it or not there are a lot of churches today that don’t put a lot of preparation into a weekend service and say, “We are just going to let the Holy Spirit lead.” Then when things don’t go well, they blame God. First of all, the Holy Spirit is not the author of confusion or disorganization.
So, if you want to hear God, then you need to prepare to meet with Him. Set a time and appointment. If you don’t set a time, you will miss it. It will never happen. We set appointments to meet with others and don’t miss them. So, why not with God?
We just need to get in the habit of setting a time and a place, and keep it. People are different of when that time is. Some are best in the early morning, some in the middle of the day, and then some at night. It doesn’t matter, just pick a time and place. Many Christians live disappointed lives because of so many missed appointments with God.
Be Still and Worship
Psalm 46:10 – Be still, and know I am God; I will be exalted among nations, I will be exalted in the earth!
Exodus 14:13 – and Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD,…”
2 Chronicles 20:17 – ‘You will not need to fight in this battle. Position yourselves, stand still and see the salvation of the LORD, who is with you. O Judah and Jerusalem!’ Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them, for the LORD is with you.” (They had been surrounded by the enemy. Now look what happens.)
2 Chronicles 20:21 – And when he had consulted with the people, appointed those who would sing to the LORD, and who should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army and were saying: “Praise the LORD, for His mercy endures forever.” (Notice that the singers and worshipers went out in front.) (Verse 22) Now when they began to sing and to praise, the LORD set ambushes against the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; and they were defeated. (Verse 23) For the people of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir to utterly kill and destroy them. And when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, they helped to destroy one another. (Verse 24) So when Judah came to a place overlooking the wilderness, they looked toward the multitude; and there were their dead bodies, fallen n the earth. No one had escaped.
Everyone of us fight battles. Stand still and worship God. When we get still, no outside distractions or noise, we can begin to enter His presence. I wonder, how many Christians actually find a time each day to do this?
Acts 13:12 – As they ministered (worshiped) to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, “Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”
Pray and Read
Mark 1:35 – Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; ad there He prayed. If Jesus set a time and place to be with the Father, why shouldn’t we?
Psalm 119:147 – I rise before the dawning of the morning, and cry for help; I hope in Your word. And what do we pray about? Whatever is on your heart that day.
And always read your Bible. I am amazed at the Christians that don’t read the word of God. But I will say this, those who won’t take the time to read and learn of God, have messed up lives, and are always wanting someone else to pray for them. They just won’t stop “being busy” to maybe find the answers they are looking for right before their eyes. We should never rely on someone else to “tell us” what the Bible says. Look it up yourself.
There is so much wisdom and knowledge about our God in His Word, that it will begin to take hold and give you revelation for daily living. It will change your life!
Listen And Write
Listening for God’s voice seems to be the hardest thing for us to do because we have to “be still.” Psalm 45:1 – My heart is overflowing with a good theme; I recite my composition concerning the king; my tongue is the pen of a ready writer.
I keep a journal and I know a lot of people who do also. I put the good things of God down on paper so that, if I go back and read it when times get tough, it reminds me He got me through that time and He’ll do it again. We can write revelations that the Lord has given us. Putting our thoughts down on paper may help you to look at something totally different.
1 Chronicles 28:19 – “All this, said David, “the LORD made me understand in writing, by His hand upon me, all the works of these plans.” (David was talking about the temple.)
Here’s what David is saying: As the LORD spoke to David about the details of the temple, David wrote them down and then would understand what God was saying.
Habakkuk 2:2 – Then the LORD answered me and said: “Write the vision and make it plain on tablets, that he may run who reads it.”
The best way I know to learn to hear the voice of God is to write when you are meeting with Him. We can write our prayers. Then write what you think God’s answer would be to your prayers. Write what you think God is saying to you through the Scriptures you read that day. You may not believe it, but the Holy Spirit will guide you to your answer. After a while, you will find that God is speaking to you so fast that you won’t be able to keep up. You can always look back on these journals and see how God directed our lives.
1 Samuel 3:1 – Then the boy Samuel ministered to the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was rare in those days; there was no widespread revelation.
Rare in the Hebrew, hints to a “limited supply.” But that’s the secondary meaning of this word. The primary meaning is valuable and precious! The word of the LORD was valuable.
Do we “value” hearing God’s voice? If hearing God’s voice is valuable and precious to you, set a time and place to meet with Him every day and watch what He will do in your life!
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