How to Hear from God

God speaks enormously and in diverse ways to all His creation. There is no generation that has ever gone without hearing His voice in different ways. To some it might be a distant rumbling or a vague voice through nature or people yet to some who are close to Him it might be a "This is the way, walk in it."

How marvelous can it be to you when the God of the universe speaks to you in a personal way? not the the general message the we at times get when gathered in a congregation but rather a personal specific word from God that gives you direction in life or in a specific challenge that you are facing.

The truth is that God is constantly longing to hung out with His creation and to share secrets with one who is willing to listen, at times it might not be the sweet scented voice of "I love you son" but it might be "If you do not change your ways, destruction is inevitable" yet in all these, if it is a voice coming from God, you will be sure that if you obey His voice, all will turn out for your good despite the current circumstances.

How do we then get to the point of hearing God's voice in a personal way? Here is what I found out as a template or prerequisite to hearing God's voice..

While studying the book of Isaiah chapter 1, I got this truth. The first chapter of that book has a timely message to the house of Judah but its application is not limited to that time only hence its applicable even to us at this present age.

Isaiah ministered in a time when both, Israel under Jeroboam II and Judah, under Hezekiah had reached the peak of political and prosperity power. Yet during this time their morals had withered for they were deep into idolatry and its accompanied vices, all the morals had died.

Meanwhile around that time, the Assyrians were growing as a superpower and would later conquer the northern Kingdom of Israel and take it into captivity, which marks the end of the northern Kingdom of Israel. Judah would have faced the same consequences save for the remnants Isa 1:9, these includes Isaiah the prophet who stood in the gap in prayers.

Worship had been corrupted, it became a ritual. The people were no longer worshiping God with their sacrifices but rather they worshiped their acts of worship. They had annihilated the object of worship which is the true living God. They had come to a point where they thought that they could buy God through their sacrifices and God being abhorred by these acts openly lets it out in vs 10-15.

If you picture it and bring it to our current situations, you will realize that the message is still applicable to this times. Churches have become financial institutions, political rulers are full of corruption and this corruption has trickled down to the people. The name of God is spoken of as a formality yet most of us do not give ourselves fully to God. Murder has become the norm all over. Yet God, despite it all is willing to purge is of our sins and enjoy fellowship with us, hence He gives us a condition to that effect.

In vs 16 God gives us the key to His presence in three basic steps:

• Cleanse yourselves from evil (repent of your sins-be specific on your repentance)
• Separate yourselves from evil
• Cease to do evil.

Then in vs 17  He says now take a new direction and start to learn to do good. If you do the above, God now welcomes you to come and reason with Him! The Hebrew word for reason here is "Yakach" which when rendered in English has several meanings

• Correct (God can now correct you in a personal way, giving you guidance and the way forward)
• Justify.
• Convict (God convicts you on what is right or wrong)
• Reprove in a right way (God becomes your vindicator)

Who in his or her right mind wouldn't want to be corrected by the living God in a personal way? who wouldn't want to be convicted of the Holy Spirit and who wouldn't want to be reproved by God? That is the level that everyone should always long to be in their journey with God.

God caps this with a promise in for those who are willing and obedient to do the above in Vs 19. (If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land). That is where I long to be!!!