You May Be Missing God’s Voice Because You’re Listening Wrong

TODAY'S TEACHING

"My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me."

 —John 10:27

It's funny how somebody else's testimony can make us question our own relationship with God.

A Christian shares how clearly God directed them through a difficult decision. They explain what happened, what God showed them, and how they knew exactly what to do. You listen, and somewhere during the conversation you start wondering why hearing God doesn't seem quite that straightforward for you.

I've seen people get frustrated over this. They love God, they pray, they read their Bible, but they're convinced they're missing something because another Christian seems to have a much better handle on hearing His voice.

We can make ourselves miserable doing that (I know cause I've done that).

Something Peter said to Jesus has always interested me, particularly because Peter had a habit of saying things before thinking them through.

In John 21, Jesus was speaking with Peter after the Resurrection. They had already shared that remarkable conversation where Jesus asked Peter three times whether he loved Him, and now Jesus was telling Peter something about what lay ahead in his life.

The conversation had become rather serious.

Jesus was speaking about Peter's future and the kind of death he would eventually face. Then Peter turned around, noticed John following them, and asked a question that sounds remarkably familiar.

"Lord, and what shall this man do?" (John 21:21). Think about that.

Jesus was speaking directly to Peter about Peter's life, and Peter wanted to know what was going to happen to John. I can almost picture him turning around.

Jesus answered, "If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? Follow thou me." (John 21:22) That's quite an answer. Jesus had something for Peter to do, and Peter was concerning himself with somebody else's assignment.

I wonder how often we do something similar when it comes to hearing God.

We hear somebody describe their prayer life, and immediately we're measuring our own against it. We wonder whether we're praying long enough, listening properly, or missing some spiritual secret everybody else apparently understands.

Meanwhile, God may already be dealing with us about something we've been avoiding for weeks.

Maybe forgiveness.

Maybe an attitude.

Maybe an ordinary decision we've complicated because we want absolute certainty before doing anything.

And we're busy worrying about why another Christian seems to hear God differently. I've learned something about this from raising children.

I have two children, and they're different people. They don't necessarily think alike, respond alike, or approach situations in the same way, and I've never expected them to become identical simply because they have the same parents. That would be a strange expectation.

Yet Christians sometimes expect their relationship with God to resemble somebody else's so closely that any difference makes them uncomfortable.

God knows us individually.

He knows what we've experienced, including things that still affect the way we respond to certain situations. He knows our personalities, the mistakes we've made, and those areas where we have a tendency to get ahead of ourselves.

Some people have spent thirty or forty years developing their relationship with God.

They've made mistakes along the way.

They've misunderstood things, learned from Scripture, received correction, and gradually become more discerning. We usually don't hear all those experiences when they share a testimony about something God recently showed them.

We hear the finished story. And then we wonder why ours feels unfinished.

There's another matter I think deserves attention.

Christians can become so concerned about hearing God's voice that they begin treating every thought as something that needs a spiritual explanation.

I've heard people describe being afraid to make fairly ordinary decisions because they weren't certain God had specifically told them what to do.

I understand wanting His direction. I want that too. But God also gave us His Word, the ability to reason, and opportunities to learn from wise people.

James 1:5 tells us to ask God for wisdom, and I believe we should do that regularly.

Sometimes wisdom involves examining the facts and making a responsible decision. Sometimes it means recognizing that our emotions have become far too involved for us to think clearly.

And sometimes the direction we're asking God to give us is already sitting in Scripture, waiting for us to obey it.

We don't need another confirmation that God wants us to forgive somebody. Jesus already addressed that.

If we're dishonest in business, we don't need to wait for a special feeling before deciding to tell the truth.

There are plenty of things God has made clear.

I think learning to recognize His direction becomes less confusing when we're familiar with what He has already said.

John 10:27 says, "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me." I especially appreciate those words, "I know them."

God knows Mark, a man from my church, has followed Jesus for over forty years, and He knows Brady, a Christian who is part of this community and was saved one year ago, and still has a hundred questions.

He knows the person who enjoys spending an hour praying in the morning.

He also knows the parent who intended to spend time praying before breakfast but ended up dealing with a sick child, a missed appointment, and whatever else the morning threw at them.

Our circumstances aren't identical.

Our personalities aren't identical either.

That doesn't mean we're excused from growing spiritually, of course. We should want to know God better, understand Scripture more deeply, and become increasingly discerning about the decisions we make.

I still want those things in my own life.

There are times when I wish I understood His direction more clearly, especially when a decision affects people I care about. And there have been times when something seemed right to me initially, but after praying and considering it more carefully, I wasn't so certain anymore.

That can be frustrating. I would much rather have everything settled quickly. You know what I mean?

Still, I've found that constantly evaluating my spiritual progress doesn't help me hear God any better. Neither does trying to reproduce somebody else's experience.

Philippians 1:6 reminds us that God continues the work He has begun in His people. I find that encouraging because I can remember things that used to bother me terribly that don't have nearly the same influence over me today. Other things still need work (LOL). Patience comes to mind.

There are moments when I can see progress, and others when I wonder how I managed to react so poorly to something I should have handled better by now. I suppose that's part of growing.

One thing I would encourage you to do is think about how your relationship with God has changed over the years.

Perhaps you pray more naturally now than you once did. Maybe you've learned to recognize when fear is influencing your decisions, or you've become more willing to admit when you're wrong. You may have developed a better understanding of Scripture without even noticing how much you've learned.

Give some thought to those changes.

And if you're relatively new in your walk with God, you have plenty of opportunities ahead to keep learning.

You don't need to borrow somebody else's personality to become spiritually mature.

You can learn from experienced Christians, certainly. I believe we should. But you still have to develop your own relationship with God.

Talk to Him about your concerns. Read His Word, give serious thought to what you're learning, and pay attention to those areas where you know He's been dealing with you.

When you're uncertain whether a thought came from God, examine it carefully. You don't have to announce every impression as divine direction, and there's nothing wrong with admitting you're still trying to understand something.

I think Christians would save themselves considerable frustration if we became more comfortable acknowledging that.

I'm still learning. After all these years, there are things about walking with God that I understand much better than I once did, along with things I wish were clearer.

And occasionally I catch myself listening to another Christian's experience and thinking I should be further along. Which brings me back to Peter.

Jesus was speaking to him about his own future, and Peter wanted to know what was going to happen to John. I wonder how Peter felt hearing that answer.

"What is that to thee? Follow thou me."

I have a feeling that's a conversation some of us need to have with God more often.

Including me.

If this resonates with you, here's a short prayer you can say today:

"Dear God, I catch myself looking at other people and wondering why certain things seem easier for them and I know that comparison can get into my thinking before I even notice what's happening. Help me settle down, pay attention to what You're teaching me, and stop making my relationship with You into something I feel I have to prove. I want to grow and I want to recognize Your direction more clearly, but I also want to enjoy being close to You today while I'm still figuring things out. Please keep working on that part of me. Amen."

God bless you! 

Your brother in Christ,

Daniel
Daily Effective Prayer

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