Listening To God Part 2 - Guide

Listening To God 1Samuel 3:1-20 The real question we should be focused on is “are we tuned in” to receive God’s message. 4 primary sources that God uses to speak through: 1. The Bible - God most readily communicates through His already revealed message which we may receive through reading or hearing. 2. The Holy Spirit - Christians may have a thought, impression or inclination which they sense is initiated by God. 3. Circumstances - God often works through events and circumstances to communicate truth and to provoke us to make changes. 4. Other people - God uses other people to speak His message to us or to confirm the authenticity of the message as we interpret it from any of the other three sources. 2 things listening to God involves: 1. Preparation - Being still and quiet before God. 2. Anticipation - We must want to hear from God and realize that God is not obligated to speak on the topic of our choice. ***What is your greatest obstacle in hearing from God? 1. Lack of stillness 2. Lack of solitude 3. Lack of silence 2 things we need to do to confirm the source of a message when confused: 1. Compare it to Scripture - A genuine message from God will not conflict with His clear, unchanging messages in the Bible. 2. At times we need to seek godly counsel and feedback to honest feedback. Even when we have the rare opportunity of solitude, many people have an aversion to silence and prefer to surround themselves with sound.

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We are not equipped with “spiritual call waiting”. It is not as if we can suddenly recognize and take a call from God while our ears are filled with the voices of others and our minds are focused on competing sounds. When the Lord called His disciples, the quiet, yet passionate, insistence of His “Follow me” was spoken to men whose every sense was receptive. In our busy schedules, making time to listen uninterruptedly for God’s voice is a choice we need to make.

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