Do You Hear What I Hear?

"But as for me, I will look to the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me." - Micah 7:7

"The LORD has heard my plea; the LORD accepts my prayer."

- Psalm 6:9

God hears me. God hears you. He listens. As our Father, he wants to hear from us! He loves to hear straight from our hearts, whether good or bad. But so many times we tend to think, "well God already knows, no use in telling him." Ok.... picture this....
You're a parent. Your child's teacher, during a conference, tells you all about your child's creativity on a project. If your child wanted to tell you about it later, would you say, "Oh honey, I already know all about it. Let's talk about something else." I certainly hope not... I know I would want to hear my child tell me EVERYTHING, regardless of my prior knowledge.
Same with us and God. And, on our end, it is so refreshing, comforting, and often provides a feeling of reflief to go to the Lord with whatever it is and just talk -- knowing He is listening!

"I call upon you, for you will answer me O God; incline your ear to me; hear my words."

- Psalm 17:6

But what about the other way around....? Do you have friendships or relationships with people who you talk to and never listen to? Probably not. A relationship is two-way. It takes investment from both parties. In a relationship with God, we tend to do more talking than listening... and then we get mad when we don't "hear" an answer. Well, how are you waiting for God to respond? There are many ways in which God speaks to us...
Circumstance: God will use an open or closed door/opportunity to answer us or show us His will.
Still Small Voice: God will impress upon us by the power of the Holy Spirit to move us towards His will.
Peace: God will give us peace in a situation if it is His will.
People: God will use other believers to speak wisdom into a situation.
But the only ABSOLUTE way in which God speaks to us in an undeniable way is through His Word.

"For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart." - Hebrews 4:12



So, my encouragement to you (and reminder to myself!) is to first, talk with God... have a conversation... do some talking, then some listening. And the listening may require spending time listening to a Pastor give a sermon, or resting in a quiet place.... or reading the Bible! Let God speak to your heart. I am always so thankful when I choose to listen for Him; He never fails me.