“Our failure to hear His voice when we want to is due to the fact that we do not in general want to hear it, that we want it only when we think we need it.”
― Dallas Willard, Hearing God: Developing a Conversational Relationship with God
You cannot learn, you cannot answer, you cannot dance, you cannot be intimate, you cannot know, you cannot respond without first hearing. With or without your ears, hearing is the most important part of communication. Hearing is knowing and knowing is intimacy. I remember sharing a story, a painful story from my childhood with a friend I had only known through email. This was our first meeting in person and I told my whole story including the painful part I had never shared before. I looked at the floor through most of the details and at the same time listened for any kind of response that would show me what he was thinking, believing, feeling, but I heard nothing. When I finally looked up his eyes were full of tears, no words, but lots of communication. We just sat there for several moments with tears dripping from our eyes and both of our bottom lips quivering and I felt more validated, more understood, more accepted than I had in a long, long time, probably ever.
For weeks or even months the Lord has been talking to me about hearing Him. It actually started about a year ago or so, when He brought to my attention that my listening skills left a lot to be desired. I argued, because I do that. He said, "Oh it's not me you are not listening to, it's everyone else." Ouch! Well Lord, to tell you the truth, there is very little out there I want to hear about. There is so much small talk. I hate small talk. I could care less how much you paid for that peanut butter or how much you saved on that shirt. I just don't care. You have to have a hunger for what you are listening to in order to actually hear.
Over the last year or so I have heard the "Shhhhh!!" sound from God more than any other. People interrupt me . . . He says "Shhhhh!! just listen." I'm in a hurry, but He directs me to listen. I think I have become a better listener and I know I have realized the many categories I don't care to hear about. Of course it's different with my kids and grandkids: I want to hear everything they want to talk about . . . almost!
After so much time focused on my listening skills, He switched to other people. He has had me watching people and paying attention to how they listen. I thought I was bad. Listening is a talent that is almost extinct in this country. Technology is filling our ears with so much garbage, many of us forgot how to tune in to a human voice. People talk over each other and nobody ever finishes a sentence. People walk away while the other is in mid-sentence. Or when I have finished what I am saying and before I take a breath the person I was talking to starts rambling about something totally unrelated. Did you hear me? Did you hear anything I said? And you listen to God? Is anybody listening to Him? It seems He is agreeing with a lot of people now a days. (Makes you wonder)
Prophecy? Hearing God and relaying the message . . . His words? How are we to believe the prophetic words we hear when the person who is giving them can't stand still long enough to hear a complete thought from a good friend. But believe they heard Jesus? How much of that prophecy was your fleshly advice on my life situation, the situation you only half way heard? It happens a lot. If you gossip and slander, I believe the Lord cuts off your ability to prophecy, because fresh water and salt water just can't flow from the same mouth. When somebody twists my words, it upsets me. How does Jesus feel when we twist His? The words of God created everything you see . . . everything . . . how dare we think we are great enough to grab a hold of them and twist. Probably why the false prophet is thrown into the fire. We have to handle those words with the fear of the Lord. Listening is a lot more than hearing the words. Tone. Body language. It's all part of communication. And if you can't hear me with all the communication parts outside of my voice, how exactly do you hear God?
Let me share a story I may have shared before: It was 4 or 5 years ago. I was sitting on my bed having a great conversation with Jesus. Suddenly He said, "Go outside. I'm going to show you something." I did. He often taught me great things sitting on the deck while I blasted worship music in my ears to drown out the world. I grabbed my music and ear buds and headed out to the deck. I got all set up, turned on the music and waited . . . and waited . . . and waited. When He finally spoke it was not what I expected, "Did you really believe that was me?" I was almost startled by His words. Then he explained, "I don't command. I invite you to join me and ask if you want to see what I have for you." I was embarrassed. It was true. But why would the enemy suddenly command me to go outside, imitate Jesus and . . . because we were having a great conversation. It was a valuable lesson.
I searched how many times "ear" is in scripture. 103 times. Yet "hear" is in scripture 374 times. Not that this is proof of anything, but I believe there are so many more ways to hear than with the ear. We have to hear with our heart. I know the Lord talks to me in several different ways and many think I am a complete weirdo, but I notice things. Silly things. Ear is only a part of hear and hear is a large part of heart. Just add a cross.
What is the point of all this? I'm not sure. I do know we have not been listening. We have softened the Churches message to such a degree that many people who have sat in church for their whole lives, said some sort of so called salvation prayer and live like the world (even though they don't cuss) are all going to burn in hell for eternity unless we start speaking truth. The whole truth. All of it. Yes, most importantly repentance. If a person has not changed, because they love Jesus, they are probably not going to be with him through eternity.
Another way the Lord speaks to us is through dreams and visions. He gave me a dream the other night and the message was clear; There is a big move of God coming and if we continue to do from our own power and not His, we will get run over by that move of God. How do we do this? Listen. Listen to Him. Listen with our hearts. He is dropping the plumb line and we have to go deep in Him or go home. Literally.
A moment of insight from God is worth more than a lifetime of experience. John Paul Jackson
