DAY 3: Learning to Listen
DAY 3: Learning to Listen
READ SLOWLY - 1 Kings 19:11 - 13 and John 10:1 - 5, 27 - 28
God tells Elijah to go out and stand before him on the mountain. A windstorm tears the rocks loose, then comes an earthquake, then a fire. Each time the Bible says the Lord was not in it. “And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper” or as we discussed, the silent voice. (1 Kings 19:12).
God had answered Elijah with fire on Mount Carmel. This time he came in the quiet. God isn’t limited to one way of showing up. But Elijah had to learn that God was still with him when things were still.
In John 10, Jesus calls himself the good shepherd. Read John 10:27. See that? The point is relationship. Jesus knows his people, and his people recognize his teaching and follow him. Jesus isn’t promising private messages on demand here.
So listening starts with Scripture. We read what Jesus has said and pay attention to how it applies to our lives. Sometimes a verse sticks with you, or a person comes to mind. Those things can be helpful, but they aren’t guaranteed, and a feeling of peace or a strong conviction doesn’t prove where a thought came from.
Our hearts can make up a voice that tells us exactly what we want to hear. God will never contradict what he has already said in the Bible. Hold your impressions loosely, and test them with Scripture and with people you trust.
Listening to God starts with what he has already said.
BE QUIET
• Set a timer for three minutes. Phone on Do Not Disturb and face down.
• Read John 10:27 slowly two or three times.
• Pray, “Jesus, I want to follow you.” Then be quiet. Don’t try to force a thought or feeling.
• If something comes to mind, write it down. If nothing does, write down the verse. Either way is fine.
What came to mind, or what verse I am holding onto:
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
YOUR NEXT STEP
Look at what you wrote. Does it line up with what Jesus clearly teaches? If it’s still on your mind in a few days, talk it over with a mature Christian friend before you act on anything big.
PRAY
Jesus, you are my shepherd, and I want to follow you. Quiet the noise in me. Keep me close to your Word so I don’t mistake my own voice for yours. Amen.
READ SLOWLY - 1 Kings 19:11 - 13 and John 10:1 - 5, 27 - 28
God tells Elijah to go out and stand before him on the mountain. A windstorm tears the rocks loose, then comes an earthquake, then a fire. Each time the Bible says the Lord was not in it. “And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper” or as we discussed, the silent voice. (1 Kings 19:12).
God had answered Elijah with fire on Mount Carmel. This time he came in the quiet. God isn’t limited to one way of showing up. But Elijah had to learn that God was still with him when things were still.
In John 10, Jesus calls himself the good shepherd. Read John 10:27. See that? The point is relationship. Jesus knows his people, and his people recognize his teaching and follow him. Jesus isn’t promising private messages on demand here.
So listening starts with Scripture. We read what Jesus has said and pay attention to how it applies to our lives. Sometimes a verse sticks with you, or a person comes to mind. Those things can be helpful, but they aren’t guaranteed, and a feeling of peace or a strong conviction doesn’t prove where a thought came from.
Our hearts can make up a voice that tells us exactly what we want to hear. God will never contradict what he has already said in the Bible. Hold your impressions loosely, and test them with Scripture and with people you trust.
Listening to God starts with what he has already said.
BE QUIET
• Set a timer for three minutes. Phone on Do Not Disturb and face down.
• Read John 10:27 slowly two or three times.
• Pray, “Jesus, I want to follow you.” Then be quiet. Don’t try to force a thought or feeling.
• If something comes to mind, write it down. If nothing does, write down the verse. Either way is fine.
What came to mind, or what verse I am holding onto:
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
YOUR NEXT STEP
Look at what you wrote. Does it line up with what Jesus clearly teaches? If it’s still on your mind in a few days, talk it over with a mature Christian friend before you act on anything big.
PRAY
Jesus, you are my shepherd, and I want to follow you. Quiet the noise in me. Keep me close to your Word so I don’t mistake my own voice for yours. Amen.
Posted in Daily Devotional