Can I Hear God?

John 18:37, "...Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice."

Henry Blackaby states in Experiencing God: "If we have trouble hearing God then we are in trouble at the heart of our faith." Jesus stated very clearly that His sheep hear His voice & know His voice. Does that bother you?

One of the greatest hindrances in our walk with God is whether or not we can hear Him when He speaks. God has several ways of speaking truth into our lives. He may use a fellow believer, a sermon from the preacher, a text from the Bible, the circumstances that you are enduring, or speaking to your own spirit. If that is the case...and if those who are of the truth hear Jesus' voice...and if God has the ability to speak...the only thing left to question is our reception.

Maybe the problem in our life is not that God isn't speaking but that we are not picking up on what He is saying. Maybe (just maybe) our reception isn't clear and we are dropping the signal. Think about it: If you have ever dropped a call while using a cell phone (and I know you have) the problem isn't that the other person isn't speaking - the problem is that you have ceased receiving the signal. I truly believe that God speaks to us more often than He doesn't. However, if we are not in a place of receiving what God is saying then we will miss out on what He is saying.

One of the greatest joys of our faith in Christ is knowing that we live in a personal relationship with God. We know that we walk with Him and talk with Him. It's a comfort to us to know that God will never leave us and never forsake us. Yet even with that knowledge so many of us struggle in this key area. We struggle in our ability to hear God. Do we struggle because we aren't listening? Do we struggle because we don't pay attention? Do we struggle because our lives are so full of noise that we have drowned God's voice from our ears?

I just saw a cartoon today where a guy was sitting in front of a computer with ear buds from an ipod stuck in his ears asking God why he can't hear Him. Does that sound familiar? When was the last time you jumped in the vehicle and turned off the radio or CD player and asked God to speak to you about a matter? When was the last time that you secluded yourself from everything and everybody just so you could hear God? The point that I'm trying to make is that we may have to remove ourselves from all the noise and all the distractions just so we can hear God speak to us!

Don't get me wrong. There are times of silence. There are times of having to seek God out in certain matters. There are times that God is longing for us to pray through things, read His Word, and separate ourselves unto Him. That is a normal part of the life of faith. But I have to wonder how many times that God has spoken to us and we have missed it. Maybe He didn't speak to us what we wanted to hear. Maybe God didn't answer us in the time frame that we gave Him. One thing is for certain when I read God's Word is that when we need God to give us direction, answers, etc. that He is able to give us all the things we need if we will be attentive to Him.

When our children were younger we tried an experiment in our home. We would say their name and they would have to come to us and say, "Yes Mommy" or "Yes Daddy". This exercise was to enhance their ability to hear our voice in any situation. There were to be ready to hear us. When they responded properly we would take them in our arms and give them a hug. It was a great and rewarding exercise. However, as my children have gotten older I have noticed that their ears have become dull to my voice. I find myself repeating their names or having to walk in front of the TV. I have to get their attention. Does that sound like us? You would think that the longer we walk with the Lord the easier it would be for us to recognize when He is speaking. But the opposite is often true. Our ears have become dull to His voice. We have distractions that get in the way and far too often God has to do something to get our attention.

What do we need to do? I think we need to get back into the habit of hearing God and responding immediately to Him. We have to place ourselves in His Word because God uses it to speak to us and it gives us examples of how he speaks. We have to take time to communicate with God through prayer. Prayer is so vital in keeping open the lines of communication with God. And we need to start responding when God speaks. If we would come before Him and say "Yes Lord" we will find that God is willing to embrace us and speak to us even greater things.

May you hear God today. May you acknowledge His voice. May you enjoy the peace of knowing that God speaks.