What Is God Saying? How To Discern God’s Voice

Last month I mentioned the importance of listening to God. God wants to speak to us – are we willing to listen? This means slowing down and allowing ourselves to move into distraction-free spaces so we can practice listening. We need to exercise our “attention” muscles. 

If you’re like me you may be asking, What happens if God actually tries to say something to me? How can I know when it is really God speaking? I think this is a very common concern and anxiety that we can have. It’s important to realize that there can be other voices that we hear, even when we’re trying to focus our attention on God. 

What are these other voices? They can be our own internal critic speaking to us, I know mine likes to speak quite loudly sometimes! They can be voices from our past – internalized scripts that we heard growing up. They can be voices from the world around us, our culture that we live in and absorb messages from without even realizing it. And they can be the voice of the enemy of our soul – the one who wants to steal, kill, and destroy (John 10:10), the Father of lies (John 8:44). So we do want to be aware that there are a number of voices that we may be hearing. This makes it all the more important that we are listening for the voice of Jesus! 

“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” (John 10:27, NLT)

I don’t think Jesus is setting us up for failure. He’s not deliberately making it difficult for us to hear his voice. He wants us to hear him and know that it’s really him speaking to us. He doesn’t discriminate allowing only some to hear him and others not. He desires that we get to know him. From the very first humans, God has been seeking to have a relationship with us, walking and talking with us regularly. It’s up to us if we really want to hear from him.

“When you come looking for me, you’ll find me. “Yes, when you get serious about finding me and want it more than anything else, I’ll make sure you won’t be disappointed.” God’s Decree.” (Jeremiah 29:13, MSG)

So the first step is a heart posture – do we really want to hear from God? The second is our physical posture – are we creating intentional space to listen to God? (Read last month’s blog for some ideas on how to do that.) The third step is discerning God’s voice. Knowing when it’s God that we hear and when it’s not. We have been given a number of ways to do this (like I said, God isn’t trying to make this harder than it has to be for us).

Here are some guardrails and guides that God has given us to discern His voice:

The Bible. Anything you hear and/or sense should line up with Scripture. “All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16, NLT) If you hear something that is directly spoken against in Scripture, you can probably guarantee that it’s not something God is saying to you or telling you to do. 

The Holy Spirit helps us understand. Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to teach us and reveal truth to us (John 14:17). Whatever you hear that you believe is from God can unfold with more meaning as you ask the Holy Spirit to teach you or help you understand it. Trust the Holy Spirit to guide you and help you understand what is from God and what is not.

Other followers of Jesus. We are not on this journey alone. It is crucial that we have trusted spiritual friends and leaders who can help us along the way. If you sense God is saying something to you and you are unsure, talk about it with a pastor, trusted friend, or spiritual director. Then go back and ask God to keep giving you more understanding.

The wider church. Christianity is over 2000 years old and while there is a wide diversity in denominations and “streams” there are some things that we all hold in common. This has been one of the key ways we have discerned truth from heresy. God has been speaking to his followers over thousands of years. 

Some other things to consider as you discern God’s voice:

• Everyone hears God uniquely. It could be words, feelings, pictures, colours, songs, or any other creative way God made you to hear him. Allow yourself the grace to ponder what comes to you in a time of listening. 
• Any conviction should be life-giving, moving you toward God and not further away. It should bring hope and increase faith and never bring shame or fear. That said, I am learning to discern the natural fear I have in taking steps of faith versus the fear that leads me away from God. God is not going to force me to do something but he will challenge and invite me into greater dependence on him. 
• Journaling is a helpful practice. Write down what you sense God is saying and praying about it. Then you can come back to this later and see if God gave you more understanding on this. Creating a track record of how God has been speaking to you can help you discern his voice moving forward.
• Be open with God about how you are feeling, your reactions to what you think he is saying, any hesitations, fear, feelings of being stuck, etc… God knows us deeply (read Psalm 139 to remind yourself of all the ways God knows you). He isn’t trying to get us to do things on our own but in his strength and with his help. Allowing ourselves the freedom to talk with him about what we are thinking and feeling can help us give him even more space to talk with us. Let the conversation continue!

Taking time to hear God and then meditating on what he says is a key part of our relationship with him. We don’t do it in isolation but within a community of faith. What is your next step to create space to listen for God’s voice and then talk with him about what you hear?