Recently I enjoyed a movie night with my family. Early in the movie we witnessed the main character stop and cock his head to the side. It appeared that he was listening. Sure enough, shortly thereafter, a drone bomber flew overhead. The scene is a vivid illustration of listening. This character had trained his ear to hear. Before anyone else, he could hear the approach of the invisible.
Hearing from God is mystical and beautiful.
Although we can’t predict a stirring from God every day at 6:30 a.m., or know that on the third day of the second week of the month God will reveal Himself, we can put ourselves in a place to attune to the movements of the Spirit. A neon sign from God might be welcomed, but it could also cause apathy, entitlement and stunted spiritual growth. God’s goodness leads us to seek Him and delight in responding to His voice. How attentive are we to the Lord’s nudging?
“Whoever has ears, let them hear,” is repeated 14 times in the New Testament. Not only does Jesus instruct His followers to “hear,” but He also makes it clear in John 10 that we can hear because we can know the voice of God. The God of the universe reaches out to those with hearts open to His words. Perhaps hearing from God has more to do with my posture before Him than an orchestrated event. God meets us through his Word, in stillness, in solitude, in seeking, and in surrender. Am I training my ears to hear? How are you training your ears to be attentive to the voice of God?
Nevertheless, too often, the tyranny of the urgent usurps the space and stillness of being in God’s presence. Hearing from God is about being close to the One who is talking; being in his presence. Maybe you need to reenergize your practice of solitude and rest to clear the noise from our ears. And, perhaps it’s time to resuscitate your approach to the God-breathed Scriptures. Instead of looking for details or principles to share, seek to meet with and encounter the Savior, King, Redeemer, Friend, Lover, Healer, and Provider of your faith.
It takes training to attune to the promptings of God. In what ways is your posture before God training you to hear his voice? I want to hear his Spirit move and be prepared to follow wherever he leads. I’m assuming you do too. Let’s each train our ears to hear the approach of the invisible.
Muse over these Bible verses. Let these Truths impact your living.
Then Jesus said, “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.” Mark 4:9
While a large crowd was gathering and people were coming to Jesus from town after town, he told this parable: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds ate it up. Some fell on rocky ground, and when it came up, the plants withered because they had no moisture. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up with it and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown. When he said this, he called out, “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.” Luke 8:4-8