Hearing God

I’m so grateful that Jesus connected me with godly mentors early in my spiritual walk who encouraged me to love God’s Word and prioritize listening to the Holy Spirit’s voice.  I learned then to practice 360 degree listening, which I still do over ten years later!  From the beginning to the end of the day, I listen to everything Jesus wants to say through the common themes of His Word, His whisper, conversations with others, and the circumstances of our lives that together create a complete circle wherein we can hear and be led by His Spirit.

We learn to recognize His voice by spending time in the Bible.  We’ll only hear Him if we’re willing to quiet our hearts and listen. We test everything we hear according to His written Word.  Here are a few questions I use for listening prayer.  Spend a few minutes asking the LORD one or more of these questions each day and writing or drawing what you hear, see, or feel:

a. What is something amazing about You I need to know?

b. What lies am I believing?

c. What is Your truth about this?

d. What’s holding me back from being everything You created me to be?

e. Who do I need to forgive?

f. Who do I need to love? How?

g. Is there anything You shared with me today that would be a blessing to someone else? Do You want me to share any of this with others?  Who?

During a time in my life when I was facing discouragement in the midst of a struggle, the LORD encouraged me through a conversation with my pastor.  He told me, “God is always speaking, so ask Him what He’s saying and listen.”

Today, I pray you take a 30-minute, mini vacation and listen to what He has on His heart to share with you.  Let’s cultivate hearts that love His Presence and delight to hear His voice!

Bear much fruit

My Momma came bolting up the stairs nearly in tears. She was ecstatic. Something important had clearly transpired in her life. Why the excitement? Why the emotion? What was happening? She proceeded to explain in decibels that demonstrated the masterful design the LORD used in creating the human ear.

“It’s my fig tree!” she exclaimed. “It’s finally produced figs—three of them!”

How long and patiently she had waited for her fig tree to produce figs. My godfather Padrino Gino, a Sicilian immigrant, had given her this treasure two years before in the late summer. Growing figs is a time-honored, Italian tradition. Mamina planted it in an elephantine plastic pot and watered regularly. It displayed nothing but leaves for several years.

You started to wonder, “Is fig season ever coming?” She explained that she told the tree it would be cursed if it didn’t produce. A few short weeks later, her efforts paid off in the form of three plump, tasty figs.

In Matthew 21:18-19, Jesus approaches a fig tree, looking for fruit. He is hungry but finds only leaves. He curses it, saying, "May you never bear fruit again!" Immediately it withers. Mark 11:13 adds the detail that it was not fig season.

According to Evangelist Ray Comfort, there are only two proper times to preach Word: in season and out of season. Many, who stall, delaying for the exact proper moment to share the Gospel, neglect the Scriptural command to witness and preach the Word in and out of season (2 Tim. 4:2). There is no excuse for neglecting the ministry of the Gospel. We are called to be prepared. We must love, know, and study the Gospel so deeply that it flows from our lips with ease. Believers will continue to discover the glorious depths of the Gospel in Heaven as we pursue knowing Jesus for all eternity. On earth, we must rely on His Holy Spirit to be ever prepared to share His good news.

Jesus taught that true and false prophets are discerned by their fruit. Those without good fruit are cast into the fire of Hell. This fruit is more than good deeds. Jesus explained that unless our works flow from a genuine, personal knowledge of the Lord Jesus, they are worthless (Mt. 7:15-23; Lk. 6:43-45; 13:5-8). Not everyone who calls Jesus “Lord” and does good in His Name will be in Heaven. The true believer has surrendered his life to Jesus, and his life, transformed by the Holy Spirit, evidences it.

Paul urges professing believers to examine themselves to ensure they are in the faith (2 Cor. 13:5). John the Beloved’s first letter was written as a test we can use. He penned, “I write these things to you who believe in the Name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life” (1 Jn. 5:13). James reminds us that a fig tree doesn’t produce olives, and a pure heart doesn’t praise and curse (3:9-13). The way we speak and live evidences our true heart condition.

Momma has placed her fig tree in the garage now to protect it from the coming frost. Last season, she covered it with a cardboard box in the garage away from the draft of the door. Once a month, she gives it a cup of water. This year, it’s blossomed so large that she may wrap it with a box and then cover it with a blanket. The leaves will all fall and only the stem will remain.

For those who live in falseness and pretending, the Bible gives a solemn warning. When their lives are called upon to produce figs seemingly out of season when they don’t expect it, their disobedience will be brought into the light, and they will be accountable for their neglect and ultimate fruitlessness. Be connected to the True Vine (Jn. 15:1-5). Bear much fruit.

Two of Momma's first figs (7-12-10)

A call for discernment of God’s will

Junior year at our public high school, English class included a unit on media and society. I was surprised when my teacher, a Christ-follower, showed an episode of a popular cartoon television comedy.

It was appalling. The pseudo-humor denigrated women, depicted soft-core porn, cursed, blasphemed the Lord’s Name, badmouthed family, dishonored parents, and spit in authority’s face.

Suddenly, I realized my teacher’s wisdom: what a clear way to portray the poisonous effects of ungodly media on society. I couldn’t wait for group discussion; now my classmates would certainly understand.

However, to my utter dismay, the majority confessed they enjoyed the episode and hoped we’d watch another next class. After all, “it might not be good for children, but it’s perfectly fine for me.” I was troubled by their double standard.

Most of these class members were not believers in Jesus. But many professing Christians similarly lack discernment. It’s disgusting and dangerous.

In Philippians 4:8-9, the Holy Spirit speaks through Paul: if it's true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, praiseworthy let it into your head, so you can think about it (vs. 8). Whether you like it or not, what you let in your head sinks down into your heart and begins to flow out in what you say and do. If you put Christ-honoring things into your head and into practice, God will be with you (vs. 9).

Should the Philippians passage serve as a filter for Jesus-followers? That depends on whether or not you want God to be near to you. It depends on how much you desire to walk closely within His will for your life.

Christian liberty and grace are not licenses to love the things of the world, pursue youthful lusts, or naively believe everything we hear (Rom. 6:1-4; 2 Tim. 2:22). I’m sounding the alarm and calling for discernment.

Discernment is not only required for entertainment choices. It enables believers to judge teaching and counsel. We must hold every truth claim up to the standard of the Bible, as the Bereans did (1 Thes. 5:21). They didn’t even take Paul’s word for it; they tested his teaching according to God’s written Word (Acts 17:11). We should not believe all we hear. We cannot do everything unbelievers do.

If you follow Christ, ensure His message is never compromised. Guarding your heart yields a clear mind to hear the Holy Spirit’s voice (Prov. 4:23). Then you can discern the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God (Rom. 12:2). When you discern His will, you ready yourself to carry it out.