How many times have we heard this before? “If I could just see it, I would believe it.” Even in my prayer, I have said, “Lord if you would just tell me what to do, I would do it.” I must admit that sometimes I find myself doubting whether I am hearing God clearly.

This really isn’t anything new for believers. In John 20:24-25 it says, “Now Thomas (also known as Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, ‘We have seen the Lord!’ But he said to them, ‘Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” Even one of the twelve who had spent the last three and a half years with Him needed a little encouragement at times.

Lately God has been showing me that even though I have doubts about being able to hear Him, He always shows up. In this blog I’m going to talk about some suggestions on how to hear His voice.

First and most importantly, what God wants from us is a relationship. He wants to interact with us in a meaningful way. Nothing beyond that is really that important. It doesn’t mean that God doesn’t find things in our life important. It just means that all our experiences are designed to bring us closer to Him. So, to hear His voice, we have to have a relationship, and no relationship happens without communication, and the best way to communicate with God is through prayer.

Not rote repetitive prayer, but real talking. When we pray, we are talking with a friend. We are talking to our family: “Jesus it’s good to talk with you today. Thank you for all of your gifts and blessings and the life that you have given me. I am having some struggle that I need help with . . . ” Make it personal and real.

The second part of hearing Him is reading your Bible. So many times we say, “If you would just tell me or show me, I would . . . ” To a large extent, He already has. He wrote you a whole book of letters, stories, and instructions that are addressed to you. The other day when talking with my dad, he gave me a suggestion that I think fits great here. When you start reading your Bible, start out with, ‘Dear Jeremiah . . . ‘ and then start reading. The Bible is written specifically for you.

I have found so many times in my life that when I can’t hear His voice, He always comes through. Sometimes, He speaks by giving me peace, and sometimes it is a voice that I know is Him. When I quit my job and started farming, I prayed for several weeks about what to do. One day I woke up and had complete comfort that quitting was what He wanted me to do.

As a counselor, He would tell me to say something to a patient. I didn’t know why, and there was no way for me to figure it out on my own. Every time, it worked out better than I could have worked it out. Sometimes I didn’t know the impact until years later. God knows that, much like Thomas, at times we will have doubts; however, if we are faithful and seek a relationship with Him, He will always be there to speak to us guiding us with peace and purpose.

– Jeremiah

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