Category Archives: Hearing from God

Hearing from God, Prayer

Keep on Asking

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Matthew 7:7-11 is part of what we commonly refer to as the Sermon on the Mount, in which Jesus is addressing His disciples regarding what it means to live a righteous life.

7 “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.

9 “You parents—if your children ask for a loaf of bread, do you give them a stone instead? 10 Or if they ask for a fish, do you give them a snake? Of course not! 11 So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him.

Jesus is deliberate in using the metaphor of a parent and a child to help put into context what He is teaching. Good parents want their children to come before them and express their desires… even if the parents are already aware of the situation. It shows respect, humility, and faith to ask for help. It reaffirms that you want their help and demonstrates you know you cannot do it yourself.

However, even when we listen… and love our children… we do not always give them specifically what they ask for. Instead we may give them what they need or something that better addresses their desires than even they can identify.

A few closing thoughts…

  • God loves us and wants to give us good things, even if they are different than that for which we ask.
  • The more time we spend with God in prayer and in His word, the better we will understand what to ask for that is most in line with God’s will and God’s character.
  • Jesus tells us to keep asking, seeking, and knocking. He does not say… “Stop asking me. I already heard you.” We may continue until we receive His answer.
  • Coming before Jesus with our requests also gives us an opportunity to spend time listening to what He may tell us. Prayer is more than a time just to make requests, but also a time to hear answers.

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Consequences of Sin, Hearing from God, How do I get started?, Prayer

What If God Is Silent When I pray?

Sometimes when we pray for something, even something that may be righteous and in line with God’s instruction, we do not hear back from God a “yes” or a “no” or even “later”. We hear silence. Our first reaction is often that God does not hear or does not care. The scriptures tell us differently.

Henry and Richard Blackaby cover this subject well in Hearing God’s Voice. There are several areas for personal reflection when we feel we are hearing nothing back from God in regards to our prayers.

If we allow sin to remain in our lives, God will not respond to our prayers. If we hear silence returned for prayers we may consider what sin we may have in our lives.

  • If I had not confessed the sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened. [Psalm 66:18]
  • Listen! The Lord’s arm is not too weak to save you, nor is his ear too deaf to hear you call.  It’s your sins that have cut you off from God. Because of your sins, he has turned away and will not listen anymore. [Isaiah 59:1-2]

Though all sin creates separation between ourselves and our holy God, the Bible highlights a few specific examples of sin that can impede our prayer life:

We must also consider whether or not we have faith for God to answer our prayer.

Ultimately we must learn to trust Jesus whether He answers our prayers with a “yes”, “no”, or “later”. We submit and declare “Your will be done, not mine.” If we hear only silence, we should spend time reflecting on any areas of sin in our life that may be separating us from God. We should repent, come before God humbly and ask forgiveness.  God hears and cares always.

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Hearing from God, How do I get started?, Prayer

Why Doesn’t God Answer My Prayer?

Sometimes it may feel like God is not answering our prayers. Often when we feel this way it is because we have asked for something and He did not give us the specific thing for which we asked. Because He did not say “yes” and “right now”, we feel like He did not hear, is not listening, or does not care.

For those of us that are parents or have even been around children, we recognize that giving them everything they ask for is not the answer that demonstrates the most wisdom or love for those children. They may ask to eat nothing but candy all day… and get a sick stomach, or ask to play in the street… and get hit by a car. We use our wisdom to decide when to answer “yes”,” no”, or “later”.

It is the same way with God. He loves us as His children and wants the best for us, but often times what we are asking for is not what is best for us. We must trust in God when He answers “yes” and when he answers “no”. So too when He has different timing than we had in mind… “yes, but later”.

Our prayers most honor God and are most likely to be answered with “yes” when we are praying for things that are pleasing to God and are in His will. Once again, this makes perfect sense to us when we think about children asking us for things. For example, if a child asks for eating candy all day the answer is “no”. If the child asks for an opportunity to take care of her little brother and show him love doing something he really likes… the answer is much more likely to be “yes” or “yes, but later”.

Sometimes God may hear and answer our prayer but it is in a different way than we expected or asked. We may ask God to grant us our desire to marry a particular individual that seems a great choice. God may deny this request and answer later by providing someone He knows will be a better choice in His timing. Similarly it could be the same individual but at a different time when we are better prepared for a successful, godly marriage.

One of the greatest examples of a “no” answer was when Jesus came in prayer before He was taken into custody to be crucified.

Matthew 26:39 [Jesus] went on a little farther and bowed with his face to the ground, praying, “My Father! If it is possible, let this cup of suffering be taken away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.”

Jesus asked for something, but willingly submitted to God’s will. Through an answer of “no” to the most righteous person ever to walk the earth, God provided a path to salvation for the rest of us through accepting Jesus Christ as our lord and savior.

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Faith / Trusting God, Hearing from God, Money / Finances / Wealth, Obeying God

Trust God More Than Wealth

In Genesis 13, Abram leaves Egypt and travels into the Negev, with his wife, Lot and all they owned.  Abram demonstrates an ongoing relationship with God. He worships, trusts and obeys God. Abram is wealthy but is not greedy. He offers the first choice of land to his nephew, Lot. Lot chooses selfishly to take the best land all for himself, though that ultimately does not turn out well for Lot.

13 So Abram left Egypt and traveled north into the Negev, along with his wife and Lot and all that they owned. 2 (Abram was very rich in livestock, silver, and gold.) 3 From the Negev, they continued traveling by stages toward Bethel, and they pitched their tents between Bethel and Ai, where they had camped before. 4 This was the same place where Abram had built the altar, and there he worshiped the Lord again.

5 Lot, who was traveling with Abram, had also become very wealthy with flocks of sheep and goats, herds of cattle, and many tents. 6 But the land could not support both Abram and Lot with all their flocks and herds living so close together. 7 So disputes broke out between the herdsmen of Abram and Lot. (At that time Canaanites and Perizzites were also living in the land.)

8 Finally Abram said to Lot, “Let’s not allow this conflict to come between us or our herdsmen. After all, we are close relatives! 9 The whole countryside is open to you. Take your choice of any section of the land you want, and we will separate. If you want the land to the left, then I’ll take the land on the right. If you prefer the land on the right, then I’ll go to the left.”

10 Lot took a long look at the fertile plains of the Jordan Valley in the direction of Zoar. The whole area was well watered everywhere, like the garden of the Lord or the beautiful land of Egypt. (This was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.) 11 Lot chose for himself the whole Jordan Valley to the east of them. He went there with his flocks and servants and parted company with his uncle Abram. 12 So Abram settled in the land of Canaan, and Lot moved his tents to a place near Sodom and settled among the cities of the plain. 13 But the people of this area were extremely wicked and constantly sinned against the Lord.

14 After Lot had gone, the Lord said to Abram, “Look as far as you can see in every direction—north and south, east and west. 15 I am giving all this land, as far as you can see, to you and your descendants[a] as a permanent possession. 16 And I will give you so many descendants that, like the dust of the earth, they cannot be counted! 17 Go and walk through the land in every direction, for I am giving it to you.”

18 So Abram moved his camp to Hebron and settled near the oak grove belonging to Mamre. There he built another altar to the Lord.

This chapter starts and ends with Abram worshipping God at an altar. We can see that Abram has maintained an ongoing relationship with God. He trusts in God, not in his wealth.

In fact, God blessed Abram and those who were with them so much that they needed to spread out a bit more… a good problem to have. Abram lets Lot pick which land he wants first, when Abram could have demanded the best land and asked Lot to leave. Abram showed love for Lot and trust in God.

Lot picked selfishly, taking the best land for himself. It turns out that what looks good to man often is not good. The land was rich but Lot would find himself suffering amongst a sinful and rebellious people who reject God. (Interesting to note that we read Abram worshipped at the altar, not Abram and Lot.)

Abram shows no indication of holding bitterness toward Lot. He was ok with Lot having the best land. Once Lot leaves, God speaks to Abram and tells him about the plans God has for him… wonderful and great plans.

Through Abram we see the type of relationship a righteous man has with God. We can challenge ourselves to trust God as Abram did. Abram made mistakes, of course, but what a wonderful example of faith in a lifelong journey with God.

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Hearing from God, Obeying God

Answering God’s Call

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Genesis 12:1-9 shows us the beginning of Abram’s journey of faith and obedience before God to leave behind much of his family and country and go where God instructed him to fulfill God’s plan for his life.

12 The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you. 2 I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. 3 I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you.”

4 So Abram departed as the Lord had instructed, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran. 5 He took his wife, Sarai, his nephew Lot, and all his wealth—his livestock and all the people he had taken into his household at Haran—and headed for the land of Canaan. When they arrived in Canaan, 6 Abram traveled through the land as far as Shechem. There he set up camp beside the oak of Moreh. At that time, the area was inhabited by Canaanites.

7 Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, “I will give this land to your descendants.[a]” And Abram built an altar there and dedicated it to the Lord, who had appeared to him. 8 After that, Abram traveled south and set up camp in the hill country, with Bethel to the west and Ai to the east. There he built another altar and dedicated it to the Lord, and he worshiped the Lord. 9 Then Abram continued traveling south by stages toward the Negev.

God had great plans for Abram. God told Abram to leave his country and his family, to leave what was familiar and comfortable. God clearly said that He would be with Abram and had plans to bless him and make a great nation from him. However, God had not revealed all the details about the journey or the plans He had for Abram. Abram made a choice to trust and obey God.

We should be careful not to assume this was an easy choice for Abram. He was leaving behind much that was familiar and taking a difficult journey with his family and possessions.  Perhaps his family did not want to go. This was not a choice to take a comfortable and easy path, but rather a hard one. Through obedience Abram opened the door to receive God’s blessings and fulfill the plans God had for him.

To live a life in close relationship with God, we must not only read God’s word, but also to learn to hear from God when He speaks to us specifically about the choices in our lives. We must learn to trust and obey Him even when we don’t have all the details.

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Hearing from God

God Speaks To Us In Many Ways

The Bible is filled with examples of God speaking to individuals on matters of broad significance and even just significance to them in their personal lives. He cares not only about His plans but also about each of His people. For those who have ears to hear Him, life is  much more fulfilling as we share the journey with our creator.

Today I will list some of the ways in which the Bible shows us that God speaks to His people. I have pulled this summary largely from Hearing God’s Voice by Henry and Richard Blackaby.  I recommend this book for further study on the topic of hearing from God.

Throughout the Bible God speaks through:

  • Creation
  • Angels (God’s messengers)
  • Prophets and preaching
  • Dreams and visions
  • Gentle voice and dramatic events (e.g. burning bush that was not consumed (Moses), fire from heaven to light the sacrifice on the wet alter (Elijah), etc.)
  • Signs and Miracles
  • Unusual and unique events like talking donkey (Balaam) and writing on the wall (Daniel)
  • Prayer
  • Scripture
  • Jesus Christ
  • The Holy Spirit
  • and many more…

God certainly has not limited himself in the ways in which He speaks to His people. God often uses communication that is personal and unique to each person. God never says anything that contradicts what He has already said in the Bible, and He usually confirms what He has said. If you seek wholeheartedly to hear Him, you will learn to discern the voice of God, identify ways He speaks, and respond to His revelations of His will. After you learn to listen to God, hearing from God will be as natural as communicating with a close friend.

I certainly do not have all the answers on how to hear from God. I am on the life-long journey to hear Him more clearly. I invite you to join me on this journey toward a more fulfilling life… a life where we can personally enjoy the love and guidance of our creator more intimately.

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