A Secret Place to Hear God's Voice

bible study sacred space

Learning to hear the voice of God is the solution to a thousand problems. It’s also the key to discovering your destiny and fulfilling your potential.

Mark Batterson, Whisper

I distinctly remember when I was a young mother in my 30's praying that I would hear God's voice more clearly. At that time I had 3 little girls and I wanted to do my best at parenting.

I agreed with Solomon's request when God asked him what he wanted: Give me an understanding (hearing) heart, for who is able to govern this great people of yours. (1 Kings 3:9)

It felt like the responsibility for raising my girls was as great as governing a nation and I knew I couldn't do it without hearing from God!

Besides being a mother who had God-given insight, I also wanted to be a woman of wisdom - not opinions.

My husband and I had family and career decisions to make and I wanted to rely on God's direction in our lives and not my own "woman's intuition."

How would I hear God's direction?

Was there a secret to hearing God's voice?

My child, listen to what I say, and treasure my commands. Tune your ears to wisdom and concentrate on understanding. Cry out for insight and ask for understanding. Search for them as you would for silver; seek them like hidden treasures.

Proverbs 2:1-4

I have discovered the secret to hearing God's voice; tuning my ear.

Tuning My Ear

"Tune" means:

to adjust to the correct or uniform pitch. Example: He “tuned” my piano.
to adjust to the frequency of the required signal. Example: The television was "tuned" to CBS.

Tuning means making an adjustment to match the frequency.

The Example of a Tuning Fork

Tuning forks were traditionally used to tune or align a musical instrument to a frequency. Imagine hearing the pure tone resonating from the tuning fork and matching it with your voice.

When you have two tuning forks in the same room and you strike one and it begins to vibrate, the other will also begin to vibrate if it’s tuned to the same frequency.

Your Ear

You were designed in God's image and have the ability to hear the "frequency" of God's voice. God is the first tuning fork and you are the second one. When God speaks, you hear it and respond by matching the "frequency" with your thoughts, words, and actions.

3 Changes

I made 3 purposeful changes in my 30's and still practice to this day. These have helped tune my ear to wisdom and clarify God's voice in my life.

1. I believe I can hear God's voice.

John 10:3-5 tells me that the sheep hear the voice of the Good Shepherd.

This verse doesn't say that I "should" hear his voice, but that I "DO" hear his voice.

The sheep recognize his voice and come to him. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. . .

I confess the TRUTH with my mouth: Jesus is my Savior and my Good Shepherd. I am his daughter and one of the sheep.

I hear his voice.

2. I acknowledge that God is speaking all the time and I need to listen.

God is speaking all of the time, I just might not be "tuned" in.

Radio and television stations broadcast 24/7, but I only hear them when I turn it on and tune in to the frequency.

God is speaking through:

God's Word - 2 Timothy 3:16 says that all Scripture is “God-breathed” and teaches me what is true and right and corrects me when I am wrong. That means God is whispering, and sometimes shouting all through His Word.
Nature and God’s creation – Romans 1:20 says that through everything God made, I can see him. I have no excuse for not knowing him.
People – God uses other people to speak wisdom into my life.
Holy Spirit - Holy Spirit is my teacher and is always speaking to me. He reminds me of the Word of God and shows me the way to walk. (John 14:26)

The problem with hearing arises because there are also other voices:

The noise of the culture bombards every one of my senses. I am fed messages relentlessly from advertisements on nearly every flat surface. Each distraction and noise enters my mind with one goal -to gain control of my attention and resources.

There is noise in my mind. Is my self talk relentless and negative?

There is noise from the enemy as he fires accusations and lies at me.

Which voice is the loudest in my life? Which voice am I listening to the most?

Is God’s voice the loudest voice in my life?

I am eventually shaped by the loudest voice in my life – the voice I listen to most. The voice I tune my ear to hear.

I acknowledge that God is speaking to me and I reaffirm that I am listening.

3. I made a sacred space and time

The third change I made that has changed the trajectory of my life is that I created a sacred space and time to tune my ear to hear God's voice.

I am an "ambiance" sort of girl. So in each home I have lived, I have created a sacred space that is warm and inviting. It has a comfortable chair, low lighting, and a small table for a candle, my Bible and journal.

In the early morning, with my sugar-free vanilla/almond milk/extra hot latte - I sit, read, and listen.

Do You Have A Secret Place and Time?

The secret for hearing God's voice = I am training my ear in the quiet space so that even in the noisy world I can still tune in to His frequency.

There is a private place reserved for the lovers of God, where they sit near him and receive the revelation-secrets of his promises.

Psalm 25:14 TPT