Recently a handful of guys and I finished up a 5- week small group study on The Four Voices book by Patrick Morley. The book’s purpose is to help Christians who are overwhelmed by the deceitful voices of the World, the Flesh, and the Devil and are struggling to clearly hear the voice of the Holy Spirit. We were reminded that, in Christ, it is possible to recognize and successfully resist the siren song of evil and to live free in obedience to the Lord.
I’m not sure what your personal experience is but, for me, hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit is not easy. Hearing the shouting of the World, or the demands of my Flesh, or the lies of the Devil - that’s no problem. Those ‘voices’ are loud and in my face constantly.
The voice of the Spirit is different, though. He does not show up at the doorway of our minds and demand an audience. No, hearing his voice requires intentional listening, for the voice of God is most often not very loud.
When the word of the Lord came to the prophet Elijah, he did not speak through the powerful wind, or an earthquake, or with fire, but in a gentle whisper (1 Kings 19:11-13). And, of course, in order for us to hear a whisper we have to get quiet.
The writers of the Psalms knew this when they wrote, “Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him;” (Psalm 37:7) and, “Be still, and know that I am God;” (Psalm 46:10)
For most of us, being still and getting quiet are not normal behaviors. Yet, if we want to to develop a relationship with the Lord that has depth; silence and stillness are essential.
Jesus modeled this behavior even during the busiest days of his ministry. The gospels tell us that, “Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed,” (Luke 5:16) and, “Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, let the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.” (Mark 1:35) Jesus knew that in order to effectively hear the voice of his Father he needed to intentionally get away from all the noise and activity of life. It’s the same for us.
So, how do we do this? Pastor Peter Scazzero in his devotional, Day By Day, says this, “The bottom line? Too many of us have a relationship with Jesus that is seriously underdeveloped. We talk to God, or even perhaps at God, but don’t actually listen to him very much.” He offers this remedy: “Intentionally rearranging our days to integrate the Christian practice of being still and silent in God’s presence.
Pastor Scazzero suggests the following guidelines for getting started with this practice:
Settle into a comfortable and quiet place. Take a few deep breaths, allowing yourself to inhale and exhale slowly.
Begin with a simple prayer that expresses your openness to God and your desire to spend time with him. Something like, “Lord, I’m here and I’m listening.”
When distractions come - and they most certainly will come - entrust them to God’s care and use your simple prayer phrase to turn your thoughts back to God.
I’ve found that a great place to begin incorporating silence and stillness is before Bible reading or prayer. Set a timer for two minutes (which at first will seem like forever) and commit yourself to sitting or kneeling there without saying a word.
It won’t be easy at first, but I promise that, in time, you’ll find that you deeply appreciate the quiet; you’ll feel your body and mind come to rest and, most importantly, you’ll have made room to hear the voice of God in the gentle whisper of the Holy Spirit.
Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” (Matthew 4:4)
Thank you Gary.