Listening Prayer Practice
1. Find a quiet place free from distractions.
2. Invite the Holy Spirit with a simple prayer like, “Come Holy Spirit.” Or “Speak Lord, your servant is listening.”
3. Sit in the quiet or read scripture if your mind wanders.
4. Write down anything you think might be from the Lord, even if you aren’t 100% certain.
5. Ask the Lord to confirm what is God’s voice and what isn’t.
Tips
1. Be patient. If you don’t hear anything right away, it can take time. The more you sit with the Lord, the more you begin to hear God’s voice.
2. If your mind wanders, that’s natural. You are human. It can be helpful to have an extra piece of paper to write down anything you need to remember later to get it out of your mind so you can focus. You can also refocus with your simple prayer inviting the Holy Spirit or with reading scripture.
3. Find a way to mark what you sense is God’s voice vs. your own, whether that is a different color pen, or symbol that marks the words that you sense are from God.
4. A journal can be a great way to build this practice in over time. Date your entries so you can look back and notice patterns.
Ways to test if it's God
1. Scripture – God will never contradict His word. Does what you heard line up with the Bible?
2. Counsel of the Saints – Check what you heard with a mature Christian who has learned to hear God’s voice in his or her own life.
3. Ask God for confirmation – Often God will confirm what you’ve heard with circumstances, something someone else says, a scripture verse that comes up, or some other way.
4. Peace – Often, a sense of peace comes with God’s voice. Do you feel peace internally or unrest? Even if the word is hard to hear, the Holy Spirit convicts not shames.
