Hearing God Workshop
Hearing God? A daring idea…but what if we are made for it?
Dallas Willard
Listening to the God who speaks.
It is one thing to speak to God. It is another to listen
John Ortberg
1. God speaks all the time
· We live in a God-filled world and God is longing to communicate with us
· The Kingdom is all around us; we are spiritual as well as physical beings.
· The Bible shows us many incidents, in the Old and New Testament, of God communicating with his people.
2. God communicates in many different ways
Get into threes and discuss:
a. What prompted you to come today
b. How God speaks to you – if you know
c. Other ways that you know God communicates with us
3. We know his voice….
· We are made to hear God
John 10: 3 – 4
He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice.
…. but we have to get practiced at tuning in.
· Like a mobile phone
· Like a radio antennae
4. Different ways that we might hear God
a. Circumstances – but be cautious
b. Dreams – an example
c. A vision – a waking dream
d. Audible voice – Samuel
e. Through the Bible
a. Highlighted passages
b. Holy Spirit reminders
c. But not Bible roulette
f. A whisper – or a whis….
g. A picture or impression
h. A word
i. Wisdom: just knowing
ii. A word of knowledge: the spirit allowing us to see part of what God sees
5. Have a go
A volunteer and listeners …. with analysis of what’s going on.
Get involved – spend time asking God too, and see what confirmations you get.
6. What is our motivation?
1 Corinthians 14: 1-3
NIV
Follow the way of love and eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy. For anyone who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God. Indeed, no one understands him; he utters mysteries with his spirit. But everyone who prophesies speaks to men for their strengthening, encouragement and comfort.
The Message
Go after a life of love as if your life depended on it—because it does. Give yourselves to the gifts God gives you. Most of all, try to proclaim his truth. If you praise him in the private language of tongues, God understands you but no one else does, for you are sharing intimacies just between you and him. But when you proclaim his truth in everyday speech, you're letting others in on the truth so that they can grow and be strong and experience his presence with you.
· It all grows out of love
a. God’s love for us
b. Our love of each other
c. Showing us what Jesus sees in each other
· It is to strengthen, encourage and bring comfort
a. It confirms that God is with us
b. Which leads to growth, enabling, releasing and healing
Eg Peter- The Rock
· Eagerly desire
a. Because it strengthens the church
b. It’s a tool not a badge of success
Our responsibilities
· What we hear is incomplete (scale of 1 – 10)
· Use “ I think God might be saying ….”
· We will get it wrong!
7. Have a go ….
Hot Seating
You’ll need a pen, paper and three other people.
8. Taking risks -
· Learning by doing
· Diving into the pool – Gary Best’s vision
· John Wimber’s experience
· And how do I know it’s God
9. Have a go
Round the room in a circle with your eyes closed – all will be explained!
10. Questions?
11. Have a go
A chance to practice what you’ve learnt
12. What are our responsibilities in receiving?
· Test everything
· Not everything you are given will be from God
· Not everything will be for now – pop things in your secret drawer
§ Thess 5: 20 – 21
Do no put out the Spirit’s fire. Do not treat prophecies with contempt. Test everything. Hold on to the good.
13. How can we grow?
· Immerse ourselves in the Bible
· Learn by doing – for some of us that means getting over the fear factor
· Pay attention to the little things – God rarely shouts!
· Expect words to be contested – as we give them and afterwards