God won’t automatically do everything for us. Instead, He has given us a key to use, which is prayer. Prayer is a privilege God gives us where He lets us participate in His will being accomplished on earth
Matthew 6:10 (NIV) your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Through prayer we develop a relationship with God. Prayer is talking to God, letting Him know what’s on our heart. Psalm 62:8 “Pour out your heart before Him.” To pour out your heart is to “tell someone your secret feelings and things that worry you.”
James 4:8 (NKJV) “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you”
Psalms 77:1 (NKJV) “I cried out to God with my voice; To God with my voice; And He gave ear to me.”
Prayer is communication. You talk, God listens. You listen when God talks. Hebrews 5:11 “I have a lot more to say about this, but it is hard to get it across to you since you’ve picked up this bad habit of not listening.”
The Lord constantly speaks to us and gives us His direction. It’s never the Lord who is not speaking, but it’s us who are not hearing. Our average lifestyle is so busy, it isn’t conducive to hearing God’s voice.
Psalm 46:10 says, “Be still, and know that I am God.” It’s in stillness, not busyness, that we tune our spiritual ears to hear the voice of God.
Some people say, God just doesn’t talk to me. But, here is an important truth: even if you don’t feel like God speaks to you—He does. In fact, He’s speaking to you right now. But, if you aren’t expecting to hear from Him, you will not hear. Only once you expect to hear from God you will hear God.
John 10:27 (KJV) “My sheep hear my voice.”
Remember when the Lord spoke to Samuel and he did not recognize His voice? Samuel thought the prophet Eli was calling him. Finally, Eli said in, 1 Samuel 3:9-10 (NLT) “Go and lie down again, and if someone calls again, say, ‘Speak, Lord, your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went back to bed. 10 And the Lord came and called as before, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel replied, “Speak, your servant is listening.”
Habakkuk 2:1-3 (ESV) “I will take my stand at my watch post and station myself on the tower, and look out to see what he will say to me, and what I will answer concerning my complaint. 2 And the Lord answered me: “Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it. 3 For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end—it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay.”
How to hear God’s voice? Take stand at your guard post (be still). Keep watch to see (fix your eyes on God). He will speak to you (tune to in, expect to hear from God). Then the Lord answered me and said, “Record the vision.” (Write down what God speaks to your heart).
God is always ready to dialogue with those who are genuinely looking for answers to life.