“the sheep recognize his voice and come to him.”
Are you desperate to hear from God, but equally as concerned about your ability to recognize His Voice?
My prayer life often reflects two desperations. One is my relentless petitions of crying out to God in need of direction or for God to move on my behalf or the behalf of others. The second is when I question my ability to hear and trust what I believe to have been God’s leading in my life.
“But the one who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep recognize his voice and come to him. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. After he has gathered his own flock, he walks ahead of them, and they follow him because they know his voice. They won’t follow a stranger; they will run from him because they don’t know his voice.” (John 10:2-5, NLT, bold added for emphasis)
Sheep are known for not being the most intelligent animal on the planet, but studies are revealing this is not true. Sheep, like humans, learn new behaviors based on experiences. A shepherd will go before the sheep, teaching them different calls for directional movement.
Not all of the sheep in the flock will be able to see their shepherd, but they learn the shepherd’s voice over time. The sheep learn to trust their shepherd; as a result, they will not follow a stranger’s voice.
How do we recognize God’s Voice?
The first three blogs in this series cover significant pieces of the process of knowing God’s Voice. We must first believe that God does and desires to speak with us. Second, we must attune ourselves by positioning ourselves to hear God’s Voice better. Thirdly, we must be open and receptive to the methods by which God communicates.
Recognizing God’s Voice above all others is the same as the sheep recognizing the voice of their shepherd. The key word is know, and our knowing is developed like our faith by hearing, following, and trusting the Voice of God over time.
The more we grow in our relationship with God, learn His ways, and respond in faith, the more we can determine His voice from all other voices.
Consider these questions to determine God’s Voice better:
Alignment questions
- Does this voice align with God’s Word?
- Does this voice align with God’s character?
- Does this voice align with loving others? Furthering God’s kingdom?
- Does this voice align with who God says I am? What God is calling me to do?
Once we have made it through the gauntlet of alignment questions, we may still struggle with deciding between good options that do not contradict God’s Word, character, building His kingdom, or pursuing our calling. At this point, we can be confident we are on God’s frequency, and now we are determining His will over His voice.
While determining God’s will is an entirely different blog, here are a few questions to help sift through the good options and attempt to clarify before moving forward.
Sifting questions
- Am I approaching this with faith and grace? Waiting on God is an act of faith, but at some point, faith will require action without all the pieces being put together. The element of uncertainty is what makes faith, faith. Grace comes into play when we are kind to ourselves and believe God to be bigger than any mistake we make. We move in faith and trust God to redirect our steps when needed and receive His grace to cover us either way.
- Which option seems the most impossible? We need to remember that God loves the impossible. If the impossibility is what is tripping us up, this very well may be where God is leading us.
- Has an internal debate been evoked? Often, we enter into defense mode when the Spirit prompts us. We give all the reasons why this is not a good idea. On the other side, we defend our position of why we feel it is a good idea and try to convince ourselves that God has undoubtedly led us in this direction. With either type of debate, we must stop and ask the Spirit to clear our minds and hearts only to hear His Voice. Then, we wait until He provides the clarity we need.
- What feelings surround this voice? Pressure, stress, anxiety, the need to please others, performance, and perfectionism are not feelings from the Spirit. The Spirit produces peace, love, and joy. While the task may seem overwhelmingly impossible to accomplish, if the Spirit is leading, there will be a sense of reassurance that He is with us and will equip us. Ultimately, His peace will cover us. All other voices lead to internal strife.
God knows our intent to hear and follow Him with all we have. His grace will cover us before, behind, and beside as we listen and learn to know His Voice above all others.
I pray you lean in and learn to hear God’s Voice above all others. I pray that as you learn His Voice, your faith grows and that you will follow Him wherever He leads. May you know His peace that passes all understanding and assurance that He is with you in every step you take. So be it, in Jesus’ name.
Meditate: Teach me to know your Voice.
Reflect: How well do you feel you recognize God’s Voice? Have you ever had a time when you thought you followed the wrong voice? What do you sense the Spirit leading you to do to grow in Hearing God better?
Deeper: John 10:1-16, 1Kings 19:9-13, Psalm 107:19-20
For further encouragement, listen to the PODCAST on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, Google, IHeartRadio, and Podbean. Search God’s Word Gives Hope. LISTEN NOW
Receive Hope Every Week with Janae’s Thrive Newsletter, blog link included – Subscribe here
JSC Life & Leadership Coaching – I believe God has created each of us to thrive. Where are you not thriving? Work? Home? Life? Let me coach you. Contact me to schedule a consultation, and let’s get you moving forward. Contact Janae
Did you know you can follow God’s Word Gives Hope on Facebook and Instagram?
(Bible References: NLT – New Living Translation)
#GodsWordGivesHope
#Hope #Bible #christianity
#HearingGodseries #James4 #1Kings19
#christianitytoday #HowdoIhearGod
#JSCLifeandLeadershipCoaching
