Hearing the Spirit – Part 2

I. How to Grow in Hearing the Spirit

• First, desire to hear the Spirit. If you seek, you will find (Matthew 7:7). A deep hunger and thirst are important (Matthew 5:6, Psalm 27:4-7, Proverbs 8:17).

Calm and Patience

• Learn to have a clear, calm, quiet mind, without worry or anxiety (1 Peter 4:7, Philippians 4:6). The more quiet/calm of mind a person is (without anxiety), the better they will be at listening to the Spirit (Luke 12:11-12).

• Grow in patience. Patience is tied to a quiet mind (Psalm 37:7, Lamentations 3:25-26). Patience is especially important.

  • If you are patient, you won’t be anxious.

  • The grace to hear and obey the Spirit comes from growing patience (Psalm 62:1,5,11).

Stillness and Listening

• Scripture commands us to practice stillness/meditation in order to quiet the mind(Psalm 4:4, 46:10).

  • By being still/quiet, we are able to listen and hear the Spirit better (Isaiah 30:15-21).

• We can practice listening by taking moments to be still, silencing the mind of our own thoughts, and waiting/listening for thoughts of the Spirit to be brought to us. Waiting quietly for the Spirit allows us to listen better (Proverbs 1:20-23, Proverbs 8:1-36).

  • God desires us to hear and listen daily (Psalm 40:6-8, Isaiah 50:4).

  • You have to quiet your own anxious thoughts in order to hear the thoughts of the Spirit. Human thoughts are futile (Psalm 94:11). Our thoughts are not God’s thoughts (the Spirit’s words) (Isaiah 55:8).

• Practical consideration: We can silence the mind and listen by removing our senses. Your five senses (what you see, hear, taste, smell, and touch) drive your thinking. Early in your growth in this area, your mind will be quietest when you shut off your natural senses

  • You can shut off your senses by: covering your eyes or sitting in a dark room (no light), plugging your ears (no sound), breathing clean air (no fragrances, candles, aromas, etc.), cleansing your mouth of any taste (no eating or tasting), and sitting still (no movement or unnecessary contact to the body).

    • Read Matthew 10:27—Prayer and listening in the dark (removing the sense of sight/light) helps one to hear and pray better.

  • Other practical considerations, to hear better:

    • Focusing on your breathing quiets your mind (long inhales/exhales).

    • Your mind is also quietest early in the morning, when your body is most refreshed or rested.

       

Renewing Your Mind

• Read the Word daily, to study and grow in knowledge of the Word and to refocus your mind.

  • Knowing the Word makes a person familiar with the speech of God; and the Spirit often uses Scripture to speak to us (John 14:26, 15:26-27).

  • A renewed mind is a focused mind. A renewed mind hears best.

II. Once you have grown in obedience to the Word, the exercise of listening to the Spirit and reading the Word should be practiced daily, as part of daily prayer time (Proverbs 8:34, Isaiah 50:4).

• Disclaimer: People who do not listen to the Spirit well (all believers, until they learn) will need to start by taking dedicated quiet times to listen. But as you grow, you will eventually hear better when you are out doing action, and quiet times won’t be necessary. This is because a truly faithful servant will prioritize listening to the Spirit and will be ready to listen at all times. As a result, they no longer require quiet time in order to hear.

What your daily practice of listening can look like:

• This practice can take as little as five or ten minutes, but increase the time as you get better at it. The goal is to be able focus on the Spirit with a quiet mind for long periods of time; but you should start somewhere—five or ten minutes is a good start.

  • Rise in the morning to pray (Mark 1:35), but first take a little time to wake up (so you’re not sleepy during prayer/listening).

  • Find a dark, quiet room (shut the door [Matthew 6:6]), sit down, put in earplugs, and close your eyes (you may need to cover your eyes if the room isn’t dark enough).

  • Start by taking a few minutes to focus your mind by breathing deeply.

  • Don’t let your mind drift. Be still and try to listen.

    • If you notice your mind/imagination drifting or losing focus on silence, simply correct yourself and focus again. Repeat this process until you end your time.

      • Eventually, you will be able to focus for long periods of time without your mind drifting too much.

    • Ask questions to the Spirit that you might seek answers to. What should I read in the Word? Who can I help? What should I pray for?

  • What you hear should be tested with the Word. What the Spirit says will always agree with Scripture (1 John 5:7).

  • Don’t rush into what you think you’re hearing from the Spirit. Be patient. You might hear something, but it could be a different spirit trying to mislead you. So it’s good to listen longer, to give yourself more opportunity to hear.

*Grow in the Word, grow in prayer, grow in your hearing, and you will be greatly effective for the kingdom of God!

Other Essential Practices to Hear Better:

Practice continual prayer, joy, and gratitude.

• Take moments to focus on all that you are thankful for and what you can rejoice about.

  • Prayer and gratitude bring love, peace, and joy that help to renew the mind. Also, a quiet mind is supported by overcoming worried or anxious thoughts through prayer and gratitude (Philippians 4:6-8, Isaiah 26:3). One cannot be calm if they are anxious. Make special effort to pray out-loud and in your own language. This will engage and focus your mind on godly thoughts.

    • A mind filled with love, joy, and peace will be filled with the Spirit (Galatians 5:22, Ephesians 5:18-10).

Repent from sinful actions and attitudes, like pride.

• Pride, anger, envy, greed (whether in thought or action)…all these make for unhealthy soil of the heart that’s too hardened to receive words from the Spirit (Luke 8:14-15).

Be careful to listen to people when they are talking to you.

• How can you expect to have ears to listen to the inaudible voice of the Spirit if you can’t even listen to the audible voices of people? Being able to love God always starts with the love you show to people (1 John 4:20). In other words, anything you want to experience from God you should do for others first.

Reading Assignment:

• Psalm 4

• Psalm 37

• Psalm 46

• Psalm 62

• Proverbs 8

• Philippians 4

Additional, Supportive Instruction for Hearing the Spirit:

• Ways to have a quieter mind:

  • A quiet mind (to hear the Spirit) is supported by being present with and focused on whatever is in front of you (Matthew 6:34). Just be, and rejoice in the little things of God’s creation around you (Psalm 118:24).

  • A quiet mind is supported by the clarity that comes from diligence (Colossians 3:23 NIV). In other words, don’t try to do too many things. Do few, essential things, and focus on doing them well—to your fullest ability. This will help clear and focus your mind. Focusing on being diligent in whatever you are doing in the present helps you to focus on the present. This keeps your mind from drifting to anxiety or overthinking.

  • A quiet mind is supported by an upright, orderly, and well-managed life (1 Corinthians 14:33,40, Isaiah 32:17, Jeremiah 29:7). If you work to keep the affairs of your work and household organized and orderly, you will have to be anxious or worried anything—your finances, your schedule, your job, etc. Rather, you will have quietness and focus.