For God may speak in one way, or in another, yet man does not perceive it. In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls upon men, while slumbering on their beds, then He opens the ears of men, and seals their instruction. In order to turn man from his deed and conceal pride from man. Job 33:14–17 NKJV
God will speak to you even if you do not perceive it or understand.
He can conceal revelation from your natural mind to keep you from getting prideful. God is often sealing our instructions even though we are not aware.
Later, you can live out these hidden things He has tucked away in your spirit and then your life is changed.
You do not always have to remember things for God to speak and change your life!
Different Ways God Speaks
God can speak through the Bible, a movie, a TV commercial, a song, during worship, a prophetic word, etc. There is nothing He can’t use! Everything applies, but you might have to weed some things out. It is the same principle whether it’s a dream or something you hear a friend share through the Holy Spirit.
Most people find that the Holy Spirit speaks directly during times of prayer or worship. God can use anything to seal your instructions, keep you from pride and keep you moving in the right direction.
God can also speak through one of His angels! In the book of Acts, there is a lot of angelic activity. In Acts 8:26, Philip has an encounter with an angel and the angel tells him where to travel next.
In verse 29, the Spirit tells Philip how to respond. He meets a man who is pondering the meaning of a verse in the Book of Isaiah. Philip explains the passage and tells him about Jesus.
The man believes and is baptized. God used a combination of a messenger angel and the Holy Spirit to speak because He wanted to bring a single person into the Kingdom.
Parables and God’s Hidden Language
Jesus used parables to explain the concepts of the Lord and Heaven in everyday story or language.
Because God’s methods are so varied and not limited, we need to understand God’s hidden language.
Reading the parables helps you understand that not only is God speaking all the time, but He also uses everyday situations for people to receive a deeper spiritual message.
It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of kings is to search out a matter. Proverbs 25:2 NKJV
Think about the last time you had to search for something. It probably took some effort. It may have taken some outside help. It is the same with searching out the meaning of a prophetic word.
Dreams can be a little harder to understand. As you consider the symbols and settings you see in dreams, studying the parables will help you see how God uses metaphors.
When it comes to hearing God, it takes time to learn to discern because it is about getting to know God and how He talks to you personally. Slow down and record things that you hear and experience, and then pray and ask God to show you what is for now and what is for later.
Practical Steps
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Write it down.
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Search the matter out, especially in the Bible. Consider doing a word study or other related Bible research into the themes God shows you.
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Read a book or take an online course.
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Ask the Lord to speak!
Foundation of love
Follow the way of love and eagerly desire gifts of the Spirit, especially prophecy. 1 Corinthians 14:1 NIV
We need to combine hearing God with loving people and ourselves.
Jesus talked more about loving people than anything else. The greatest commandment is to love God, other people and yourself (Matthew 22:37–39).
Steps to Hear God Accurately
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Build a daily habit of listening and connecting with the Lord.
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Cultivate the spiritual atmosphere (unbelief and grumbling can close things).
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Track what God is saying.
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Practice so you can learn to discern.
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Activate it in your life.
Cleaning Up Your Mindset
Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:2 NIV
We need to renew our minds away from the patterns of the world.
You will need to eliminate fear, judgments and unbelief.
Replace these with the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22–23).
Changing the Spiritual Atmosphere
We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. 2 Corinthians 10:5 NIV
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Do an inventory of your thoughts and words.
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Recognize ungodly thoughts and take them captive.
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Stop any judgments of yourself and others.
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Bless more than you complain.
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Go on a negative-thought-and-talk fast and develop that lifestyle.
Blessings,
Doug Addison
