Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

New Wineskins

Home
Evangelical
7 Ways to Listen to the Holy Spirit

7 Ways to Listen to the Holy Spirit

Last updated on: March 14, 2016 at 7:49 am by Josh Daffern

7 Ways to Listen to the Holy Spirit 2016-03-14T07:49:40-06:00 Josh Daffern

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

www.unsplash.com

If you want to begin listening to the Holy Spirit and allow Him to guide your steps but you’re not sure how to begin, here are seven tips to help you start listening to the Holy Spirit:

1. Spend time with God through Bible study and prayer.

God has already spoken through His Word. The more time you spend with God through reading His Word and through prayer, the more familiar you’ll become with His voice. This is important because God will never tell you to do anything that contradicts His written Word. The more time you spend time with God, the more familiar you will become with His voice.

2. Memorize Scripture.

The Bible is alive and active (Hebrews 4:12). It will change you, transform you, make you more receptive to hear God’s voice. It’s not enough to simply read the Word. You need to begin to let it saturate your heart and your mind. Many times the Holy Spirit will use the Word to guide you. This becomes so much easier if you actually have the Word in your heart.

3. Cultivate a posture of listening in prayer.

Don’t just run into prayer with your checklist in hand and pray, “Dear God, please help me here, bless this, bless that, protect them, help me have a good day. Amen.” Spend time listening. You may not hear anything, but it’s important to remember that prayer is designed as a dialogue with God, not a monologue.

4. Get still.

Look at the story of Elijah in 1 Kings 19 and you’ll see that God chose to speak to Elijah through a gentle whisper. God often chooses to speak through a still, small voice, not because He isn’t powerful enough to shout, but because He wants us to remove all the white noise and distractions from our lives and focus on Him. Find a time and a place to get quiet before God everyday. Get still, and you’ll be in a great position to hear God’s gentle whisper.

5. Practice discernment.

Practice makes perfect. Parents practice discernment every day with their young kids. It’s how they can tell when their child is ‘fake crying’ or ‘real crying.’ In the same way, we’ve been given a spirit of discernment that God wants us to use to help distinguish between God’s voice, the enemy, and our own thoughts. It takes discernment, and the only way to figure it out is to start practicing.

6. Seek wise counsel.

God doesn’t speak exclusively to you. He also speaks to those around you. The book of Proverbs talks a lot about the necessity of seeking wise counsel. When the Holy Spirit speaks to you, seek someone out (a spouse, a mentor, a parent) and get their input. Say something like, “I think the Holy Spirit is telling me to do this, am I crazy?” God many times affirms through the wise counsel of those around you.

7. Do the last thing you know God told you to do.

Continued revelation is tied to obedience. If you look in the book of Acts (the story of the early church), the Holy Spirit is all over the place. In fact, I would argue He’s the main character (the word “spirit” appears in the book of Acts 67 different times). The reason the Spirit is still leading and guiding the church in Acts 20 is because the church obeyed the Spirit when He led back in Acts 1-4. If God hasn’t spoken to you in years, perhaps it’s because you didn’t obey the last thing God told you to do, waiting for another option. When the Spirit speaks, it’s not meant as a suggestion, but as a command. If you want the Holy Spirit to continue to speak to you, obey Him when He does speak.

QUESTION: What other tips do you have for listening to the Holy Spirit?

Previous Post

March 11, 2016

The Simplest (yet Hardest) Way to Reach the Next Generation

Next Post

March 18, 2016 Why I Choose Not to Drink Alcohol

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Family Matters Ministry in the Trenches Morning Brew MTVpastor New Wineskins Top Menu Truth from Life Uncategorized Watch Sermons

Select a Month June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Which book of the Bible contains the story of Balaam’s talking donkey?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Numbers Exodus Judges 1 Samuel