If you are serious about having a truly interactive relationship with the Lord in which you speak to one another and hear from one another, you will need to spend quality, uninterrupted time opening your heart to Him. When Samuel finally prayed, ‘Speak, for Your servant hears,’ the Bible says, ‘Then the LORD said to Samuel.’ All too often, our prayer is ‘Listen, God, for Your servant is speaking.’ Listening to God can involve a variety of practices: reading His Word, spending time in solitude and silence, and hearing from God just like a seasoned friend you trust. Here’s an example: ‘As they were going down to the outskirts of the city, Samuel said to Saul, “Tell the servant to go on ahead of us.” And he went on. “But you stand here awhile, that I may announce to you the word of God”’ (1 Samuel 9:27 NKJV). One of the most effective ways of hearing from God is through meditating on His Word. You might say, ‘But I don’t know how to meditate.’ If you know how to worry, you know how to meditate. In both worry and meditation, your thoughts and focus are given to a certain thing. When you meditate on God’s Word, you’re focusing your thoughts on the right thing! God told Joshua: ‘This Book…shall not depart from your mouth [speak it regularly], but you shall mediate [focus] in it day and night, that you may observe to do [act on it] according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success’ (Joshua 1:8 NKJV).

© 2024. Written by Bob and Debby Gass. Used by permission under licence from UCB International.