How Can I Hear From God?
“Why does God never speak to me?”. If you’ve ever asked this, you’re not alone. This question is a common one, whether you are a Bible-reading-Christian, or just wondered if God exists, you may have found yourself asking this at some point. After all, if you’re wanting to grow your relationship with God, hearing what He has to say seems like a pretty important step. In that case, how do we hear from God?
I have good news! Because God loves you, He wants to talk to you!
He is absolutely interested in what is going on in your life, how you feel, your hopes and dreams, and any difficult decisions you are faced with. God hears you loud and clear. The first thing to remember is that, even if you can’t hear God now, God can hear you. No begging, pleading, or religious rituals required.
You may be asking, “What good is talking when I can’t hear a response?” No one likes feeling like God has left them on “read”. However, the real question isn’t “does God talk back?”, but rather, “How can I hear from God?”
If you’re waiting for someone to answer your message, it wouldn’t make sense for you to put your phone on a shelf and walk away, would it? The truth is, many of us have done that without realising it. God’s biggest response to all our questions can be found in the Bible. If you want to hear what God’s response is to a question, a great way to check is to see if He’s already sent us the answer. If you want to know what God says about topics like fear, doubt, illness, work or a bunch of other topics, you’ll find that God can use the Bible to tell you. You might also find that as you’re reading the Bible, a sentence or two might jump out at you. Try highlighting or writing them down next time that happens, because God uses what He has said before, to give us a message for today.
“What about if I want a direct answer?”, you may ask. Sometimes, we just want to hear from God directly, and that’s ok.
Next time you talk to God, try taking a moment to stop and listen.
Some people like to talk to God when they read their Bible, go for a walk, or when they listen to music. God can speak to you by putting a feeling, a picture, a word, or even a whole sentence into your head. Sometimes it might not be super clear, or you might be unsure whether or not it's your own conscience. You might like to write down what they think God is saying because it’s a brilliant way of learning to recognise God’s voice. With a bit of practice, you can learn to hear what God is telling you. Even though setting time aside to listen out is a great idea, keep in mind that God can talk to you anytime, anywhere.
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