Big Ears Are BeautifulSample

Listen to the Spirit

God also speaks through His Spirit. When a person trusts Christ as Savior, the Holy Spirit takes up residence in the believer’s heart. He guides the thoughts and actions of believers to God and in the way that He desires. The challenge is to tune our spiritual ears to His voice.

“How do I know the difference between the Holy Spirit and my emotions?” Grounding ourselves in the Bible can help us discern between our emotions and the Holy Spirit. Emotions come and go, but God’s Word remains the same. God can use our emotions to direct us, and He does, but the Spirit’s guidance is consistent and deep, as a sustained movement of the heart that points to honoring God. It is not a whim or passing fancy. Our emotions vary through the day, but the Holy Spirit’s leading is consistent and persistent. It is sustained over time. One writer calls this leading a “sacred echo” that is heard over and over again.¹

Say, for example, that you have a decision to make that is basically a choice between two paths, A and B. Ask God to speak to you by laying one path heavily on your heart. As you pray, seek Him and consult His Word, one of these paths will likely become a sustained “note” in your heart. Frequently a certain thought just won’t leave you alone. Doors may begin to open as you begin to sense deeply that this is the right path for you to take.

This method does not guarantee that you will “hit the bull’s eye” of God’s will 100 percent of the time. Relax in knowing that earnest attempts to follow Him—even if marked by stumbles—will go a long way to keep you on the right path.

We often imagine that our mistakes prevent us from finding His will. God is not like that. Our willful disobedience can take us off course, but honest seeking allows us to gracefully get up and keep walking.

Listen with your soul for the sustained voice of God’s Spirit instead of listening to your own emotions. God wants to direct your life. Heaven does speak to humanity, and the Holy One deals with individual hearts. Hearing from God is a privilege reserved for His children, and it is part of the blessing of knowing and belonging to Him.

Note

1. Margaret Feinberg, Sacred Echoes (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2008).