Is This My Thoughts or Is God Speaking? - How to Hear God's Voice (3 Keys)

when you can hear the voice of god you have what i call the great advantage and the reason i call it the great advantage is because if you know me or you've heard me teach for any number of times you'll know that i'm very i'm very curious as to what the history of the church looks like so i would study earlier in my pre-teen years into my teen years i would read books about great evangelists great revivalists great missionaries i would read of the early church fathers the apostles the disciples of jesus the efforts of the early church the results of what happened in the book of acts and i would look and i would read many biographies of men and women of god who were very anointed by the holy spirit and one of the things i noticed about men and women of god who were anointed by the holy spirit is that they always seem to be in the right place at the right time under the right circumstances with the right people it's as if they knew what was coming and you look back in hindsight obviously as the cliche goes hindsight is 20 20 but you look back at your life sometimes and you look at the times that you obeyed the voice of god you look at the times where god was clearly directing you and you didn't really understand it in the moment but when you look back now at what god had spoken or how god instructed you or how god redirected you looking back on it it's very exciting and thrilling and easy to see that god was at work and you say i can see the hand of god it's obvious now but when you're in it it's not the same when you're in the situation where god is speaking to you and he's made something clear you look at the circumstance and often we kind of go lord are you sure you know what you're doing and that's human nature to question the sovereignty of god and then there are other times when you look back at your life and this is regrettable for some of us where you look back but we all have moments like this and you say i should have obeyed god i i knew that was the holy spirit or perhaps you look back at a situation only to realize that it was in fact the holy spirit speaking to you because often we get stuck in the moment there's a lot of confusion there's a lot of chaos and in that moment we look at where we are and we can't really tell that it's the holy spirit speaking we get this gut feeling or this this this slight idea that kind of comes in very subtly and looking back after we've ignored that we go that was the holy spirit i should have listened but i want to talk to you today and i'm going to give you three very practical keys we know that it's important to hear god and this is what i call the great advantage i'm gonna give you three keys to hearing the voice of god because as i'm saying with these people it's like they were perfectly positioned can you imagine this that god the one who created you the one who formed the world the one who has all understanding all wisdom and foreign knowledge of what the future holds that he is able to speak to you on a daily basis specifically in detail straight to your heart and to your mind to your spirit and god wants to instruct you in this moment now in this season of your life you may feel like the heavens are brass you may feel like you can't clearly hear god you may feel like there's so much going on around you that you can't quite tune in to hear what god is saying to you i have good news for you that's what this message is about today and you can become someone who has this great advantage once you learn the voice of god it does away with lack it does away with regret it does away with calamity it does away with chaos it does away with wasted time because often we do things even as the scripture says that satan led king david to take a census of the people of israel and it was a waste of time and then we see where where king david also goes and he wants to build the temple and the prophet samuel gives him the go-ahead and king david goes thinking that he's going to build the temple then the prophet goes actually the lord spoke to me more clearly now and in fact you're not the one to build the temple when you hear the voice of god when you know the voice of god it saves you from wasting time it saves you from unnecessary heartache it saves you from wasting resources it saves you from going down wrong paths it saves you from making ungodly connections you know the people with whom we're connected that's important but just as important as who we're connected to are those who god disconnects us from so what god takes is just as important as what god gives and god wants to give you this very clear very specific instruction if only you'll be willing to listen if only you're willing to hear now really when it comes down to it everything that god will speak and and you know you talk about dreams you talk about circumstances you talk about coincidences you talk about other people god can speak through many different means but his message is always truth god will speak to children as i said god will speak through dreams and then i can go on listening the many different ways in which god speaks and and you probably have experienced god speaking in unique ways to your heart but the truth of the matter is that no matter what you hear no matter what is spoken no matter the delivery method there are categorically speaking only three voices that speak to your heart so no matter what the delivery system is of the message categorically speaking there are only three voices that will speak to your heart and they are the secular the satanic and the spirit now the spirit is very easy to spot once you know the voice of god the spirit aligns itself with god's word and with god's nature now the satanic is very easy for any believer who's been serving the lord for any number of years any believers had any experience in the presence of god or with the holy spirit or even slightly knows the voice of god or is in the word that believer will be able to spot the satanic like that it comes across very easily you know what i'm talking about like you listen to a certain song comes on the radio you're you're a certain movie comes across the television a certain person comes in or there's just this this demonic feel to it you can tell and it's actually quite easy to spot the satanic because the satanic will always be in direct contradiction to the word the satanic contradicts the word now the satanic is when the enemy speaks to you to not forgive when the enemy tells you things about yourself that are contrary to what the word of god tells you about yourself it's very easy to spot the satanic so long as you are serving the lord and you're in the prayer room you're in the word you're asking god to clarify things it's very easy to spot the satanic now the secular is a little more difficult because the secular isn't necessarily anti-christ it is just the lack of god it is i like to call the secular the lawyer of sin in other words the secular looks for loopholes around god's law of righteousness and love the secular looks for very subtle ways to violate the conscience i mean i'm talking about um you know certain things like some christians believe it's okay to drink that's secular some christians believe it's okay to go to these you know these nightclubs or whatever they want to call that's secular there's some people who ask the question well how close can i get to to sin without actually sinning that is the voice of the secular the satanic will straight out say something that is wrong the secular will speak with more subtlety and tell you the things that are near the line but the spirit asks you and the spirit pleads with you to flee away from that line to flee away from even the appearance of ungodliness the spirit pulls you from the darkness and doesn't even want you anywhere near the darkness so the satanic the secular and the spirit now the spirit is different than the other voices the secular will always contradict the nature of god this is why it's so difficult to spot because it's easy to quote the bible it's easy to read the bible and know directly how the satanic voice is contradicting that you know the scripture says that the children of israel knew god's acts but moses knew god's ways there's a deeper understanding of god that comes and this is why as someone becomes more spiritual they become less secular the secular says how much can i look like the world and still be of god so the satanic is an obvious giveaway because it's direct contradiction to the word of god the secular is very subtle and this is why mature believers have issues with things that immature believers do not whereas a mature believer might say well i'm not going to participate in that the immature believer will say well i'm i am free in christ to do so paul the apostle addressed such things and he says well you know actually everything is permissible but not all things are beneficial so satanic obvious secular subtle spirit is also obvious if you're in the word and in the prayer if you're in the prayer room you'll know the voice of the spirit so the satanic contradicts the word the secular contradicts the nature of god and the spirit aligns with both the word and the nature of god so those are the only three voices everything you will ever hear from people from circumstances and the list goes on will categorically fall into one of those circumstances or one of those categories so john chapter 10 verse 27 jesus said something very profound he says my sheep hear my voice now i know that might be oversimplifying it but i've come to find that the greatest truth i can tell you concerning the voice of god people come to me all the time brother david how do i hear god how do i hear god how do i hear god this is the most profound thing i might be able to tell you concerning the word concerning the voice is that jesus said my sheep hear my voice you see everyone who belongs to god everyone who is a sheep hears him the question is not how do i hear the voice of god or can i hear the voice of god the question you need to be asking yourself is am i his sheep do i belong to him if you belong to him you are hearing his voice so this is the most radical thought right here if you're a believer filled with the holy spirit you already hear god the question is not of hearing god but of recognizing his voice when he speaks so this is interesting because in first samuel chapter 3 verse 1 through 10 first samuel three verse one two through ten we read the story of how god called samuel now now this is interesting first samuel 3 1-10 meanwhile the boy samuel served the lord by assisting eli now in those days messages from the lord were very rare and visions were quite uncommon one night eli who was almost blind by now had gone to bed the lamp of god had not yet gone out and samuel was sleeping in the tabernacle near the ark of god suddenly the lord called out samuel yes samuel replied what is it he got up and ran to eli here i am did you call me i didn't call you eli replied go back to bed so he did then the lord called again called out again samuel again samuel got up and went to eli here i am did you call me i didn't call you my son eli said go back to bed samuel did not yet know the lord because he had never had a message from the lord before so the lord called a third time and once more samuel got up and went to eli here i am did you call me then eli realized it was the lord who was calling the boy this is a perfect example of someone who was hearing god but didn't know he was hearing god so it's not a matter of hearing god you already hear him the volume is already up it's already there the key is recognizing god's voice among all others recognizing the spirit among the satanic and the secular so i want to give you three keys now to how you can more clearly hear or recognize the voice of god and the first key is something i've taught about often so i won't spend too much of my time on this one but the first key very simple is silence and stillness now silence is practical silence is a matter of discipline silence is a matter of action silence is the putting away of outer distraction you shut off the tv turn off the radio tell people you're not available go to the private prayer room silence is practical and the scripture says in psalm 62 1 for god alone my soul waits in silence from him comes my salvation now this is talking about a deeper form of silence because he says my soul waits in silence not my physical body my soul awaits in silence so silence is the putting away of outer distraction but stillness is the quieting of the soul it's quieting anger it's quieting confusion it's quieting the chaos and the troubles and cares of this world it's putting outside of your recollections putting outside of your mind out of your awareness the things that disturb you about your life right now when you go to pray you'll notice the enemy starts fighting you with accusation temptation deception he starts throwing these different assaults at you to try to distract the mind from hearing god you know that thoughts are the actions of the mind and so the enemy tries to get you to turn your mind to something else so that the soul has has to work has to hear has to listen to hear through all of the noise can you hear the voice of the holy spirit amidst the noise of life silence and stillness is very key the scripture says this in psalms chapter 46 verse number 10. it says be still and know that i am god i will be exalted among the nations i will be exalted in the earth the scripture says be still and know stillness precedes revelation before you can know you have to be still he says be still and know that i am god not be still and know your troubles be still and know your faults be still and know what worries you he says be still and know that i am god be still and put your mind on me be still and focus on me be still and let the eyes of your heart look at the face of jesus be still and know that i am god not be still and know things about yourself not be still and know things about this world be still and know have revelation of who i am when you focus on the lord when you look to jesus causes stillness and worship results you know worship can be as quiet as a whisper yet it can drown out all of the noise of the cares of this world worship can be as quiet as a tear streaming down your face but it can silence the voice of every demon in hell silence and stillness are the keys to moving right into the presence i'm often i often visit churches and this is not to sound critical this is not to be mean but the truth is that not everyone understands this and what people lack in power what they lack in the presence of god they tried to make up for with hype and emotion and music and you can tell when there's a real tangible manifestation of god's presence in fact first kings chapter 19 verse 11 to 13 says this this is the scripture now and he said go out and stand on the mount before the lord and behold the lord passed by and a great and strong wind tore the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the lord but the lord was not in the wind and after the wind an earthquake but the lord was not in the earthquake and after the earthquake of fire but the lord was not in the fire and after the fire the sound of a low whisper and when elijah heard it he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave and behold there came a voice to him and said what are you doing here elijah a whirlwind appeared an earthquake appeared a fire appeared that god appeared in the still small voice i was listening my brother michael who actually taught spirit church last week i was listening to a sermon he was talking about this very verse and he said something so profound and i i it really caught my attention he said you know god in the earthquake shook the prophet and he had no choice but to be shaken the whirlwind had it come by him close enough he would have had no choice he would have been taken up the fire had it got close enough he would have had no choice he would have been burned but god appeared in the still small voice because it presented to the prophet a choice to obey and you know we often look for god to speak in these very obvious ways and the reason we have to settle for the fire the reason we have to settle for the whirlwind the reason we have to settle for the earthquake is because we're not willing to discipline ourselves to find the silence and the stillness that leads to the revelation of who god is this is something i've been thinking about i realized that god had to show thomas remember jesus he said go ahead touch the holes in my hand and thomas touched and he believed and jesus said you believe because you've seen but blessed are those who have not seen yet still believe without faith it's impossible to please god there is something that happens in our relationship with god when he's able to do less for us and still we do more when you come to the place where you don't have to settle i mean we lay out these fleeces for god god if this is really you do this god if this is really you do that when deep in your spirit you know what he's speaking you know what he said but you're looking for something obvious not because you really don't know if it's god or not but because you want to delay but let me tell you something delay is disobedience timing is just as important to the will of god as any act of obedience you'll carry out delay is disobedience this is why we have to be sensitive you know when i think of sensitivity i think have you ever heard of you ever heard of a sensitive tooth for where the moment you touch it you react with pain or if you have something wrong with your arm or or your body and it's sensitive or maybe a burn on your skin and you touch that skin you're going to react instantly because that's what sensitivity is or you ever offend someone who's overly sensitive you say one thing and they just start crying it's because they react because they're overly sensitive sensitivity is not just the ability to sense something sensitivity speaks of how quickly something reacts to something else being sensitive to the voice of god has everything to do with how quickly you respond to what you hear i want to hear the voice of god with such clarity that i could hear a whisper in the spirit i want to hear the voice of god with such clarity that when god speaks i'm not wavering back and forth and i know you want the same and here's how you do it you move into silence and stillness god cannot speak or you cannot hear him i should rather say you cannot hear him when you're standing in the midst of the clutter and the chaos of this life you've got to remove yourself from the chaos remove yourself from the clutter and that is found in prayer in the places of silence and stillness before god our generation has so much trouble we are constantly distracted with technology and entertainment and because everything is fast paced quick and and so loud and boisterous and and clamorous really we become dulled our senses become dulled and if something doesn't entertain us if something's not fast pace then we'll lose interest within a few seconds people miss out on the wealth of knowledge that rests in books i mean i think about how many books i've read that have transformed my life i look at my brain kind of like a computer and books are kind of like software that you put on that computer you can learn to do almost anything and if you read a book you're programming your brain you're loading that software that that computer software onto your computer that is the brain that's why it's so important to be careful what you read yet some people are so lazy that they can't even read past the chapter with something that is going to change their life and this is what god wants you to get to the place to where you are able to silence the inner chaos and just listen don't just get in there and start being boisterous with your request be still and know so number one the first key to recognizing the voice remember he's already speaking to you now that's the truth he's speaking to you now he's saying something to you now because god god's word is eternal every word that he's ever spoken hangs in eternity for all to claim it from whatever era they may be from when god speaks it's eternal so when god speaks to you is god speaking to you right now about your future he's speaking to you right now about your destiny your call what you're supposed to do he's talking to you right now can you hear him silence and stillness number one number two very practical john chapter 14 verse number 26 says but the helper the holy spirit whom the father will send in my name he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that i have said to you now all that he has said to us is recorded in the word number two the way you begin to recognize the voice of god is through the word now i don't have to check the caller id for most people who call me the moment i push i answer on my car and push because i don't like to be a distracted driver you know like some individuals i like to focus on the road and so when i when i answer a call i do it from my steering wheel and i i say hello and then the moment the voice comes through if it's somebody i know i don't have to ask who this is i just say oh hey so and so how are you because i've heard their voice so often that they could speak one word and i'll recognize it you know your family members your friends you hear them speak one or two words you will recognize it the moment they speak it why because you've heard it so many times before god's voice is no different the way you hear his word with clarity is by reading the bible you know how i know when god speaks to me because it sounds so much like what's in his word and i recognize his voice because i hear it every day through the word and i can't describe my my loved one's voices to you if you ask me to describe you know someone's voice my dad's voice or my sister's voice or my wife's voice i could give you some traits oh it's a female voice it's a male voice it's a little bit on the deep end a little on the high end but i couldn't i mean it'd be very difficult there are a lot of nuances to a voice that make it very difficult to describe the same is true with the voice of god i ask you how do you describe the voice of god you say i don't know i just know it when i hear it and the more you hear it the more familiar it becomes so you hear it more often by getting into the word if you can get this truth within you if you get the word of god in you you'll be able to hear his voice recognize it with such clarity there will be hardly be a doubt when he speaks to you if you will get into the word the word will get inside of you if you will commit to the word the word will commit to you it's a person the word of god when read by the holy spirit's revelation when the holy spirit accompanies you in the reading of the word the bible ceases to become a biography and instead becomes a living person jesus said he will remind you of the things i have said that's the word and he the holy spirit will reveal through the word truth if you want to recognize the voice of god then get in the word more often how can you expect to recognize the voice if you haven't been hearing it if you haven't been coming to know it through the word you know and then some voices sometimes i'll get a phone call and i'll click hello you know how how are you and i hear a voice i know that voice but i don't quite know who that i'll say who is this i say oh this is so oh my goodness so-and-so i haven't heard you in so long and because it's been so long since i've heard their voice i have trouble recognizing it some of you it's been so long since you've been in the word that you have trouble recognizing the voice of god it's time to familiarize yourself with his voice again through his word and with the aid of his precious holy spirit so that's number two the word so number one silence and stillness and that's something you could practice right away number two the word that's something you could practice right away and number three here's something else you could practice right away and this is probably one of the this is probably the most effective key to hearing the voice of god psalm 37 23 i love this verse the steps of the righteous man are ordered by the lord when he delights in his way the steps of the godly the steps of the righteous are ordered by the lord you know god does not direct the steps of the ungodly sure there are i mean i'm speaking in generalities right generalization right now there are some exceptions to the general rule that god does not order the steps of the unrighteousness i mean the scripture talks about how the blind fall into a pit or the wicked go into a pit the ungodly can't see the the folly that lay before them but the righteous we escape it because we have the voice of god we we escape a lot of trouble because we have the voice of god in our life but did you know that other than those instances of god's mercy where he'll redirect the sinner to find salvation that for the most part god only directs the godly i'll read you another verse proverbs chapter 3 verse 6 in all your ways acknowledge him and he will direct your paths in every way you acknowledge him he will direct acknowledge him in your family and he'll direct you with your family acknowledge him in your finances and he'll direct your finances acknowledge him in your emotions and he'll direct your emotions acknowledge him in your workplace and he'll direct you in the workplace acknowledge him with any area in your life acknowledge him in that area and he'll direct that area number three is obedience obedience is the third and one of the most powerful keys to hearing the voice of god here's the issue many of us have received a word from god and we know clearly beyond a shadow of a doubt what he is speaking the issue is that some of us ignore that initial instruction and then move on here's the thing about the lord god will give you an instruction he'll give you a command he'll he'll tell you what he wants you to do and if you ignore that instruction you're shutting yourself off to the voice of god god will speak and not speak again until you've obeyed some of you you're waiting for a revelation of god because you want to hear something else you want to hear him say something other than what he spoke to you you know in your heart what he said you know in your heart what he spoke to you and he's speaking it to you now it's the same word but he's not going to talk to you about step five if you're not taking step one some of us were saying lord i don't like that or lord i don't want that or lord maybe that's not you and he's spoken it's so clearly to your heart yet we ignore it and then expect him to speak on something else god will not speak for the next instruction god will not give you the next order until you've obeyed the first this is this is some truth right here and it's going to liberate some of you because some of you you've been waiting too long to move on what god has been saying to do he's spoken you're waiting and asking god speak to me speak to me speak to me but until you've obeyed that initial instruction god will not speak something else number three is obedience you see disobedience doesn't keep god from speaking it keeps us from hearing god's direction is conditional so jesus says come follow me over here and he goes over there and we say jesus speak to me why aren't you speaking to me it's because he's over there and he's wanting you to catch up and he'll speak to you there this this may be difficult but it's truth we have to obey the voice of god if we want to continue to hear him maybe you're one and you're saying lord i i know what lay before me and it's a difficult step to take and maybe it's just troubling you have faith only believe god will never direct you god will never direct you to a place that is not his will god will never direct you to go somewhere that doesn't ultimately lead to life so those are the three keys number one is silence and stillness number two is the word and number three is obedience so you're watching this now i want to pray with you you're watching this now and you're saying lord i so hungry to hear your voice i so desire with everything in my heart to hear again that voice that brings peace that brings stillness that brings joy you know when he speaks it shakes you to your very core when god speaks mountains move when god speaks miracles happen when god speaks creation takes place when god speaks doors open you said lord i just want to hear you i just want to know what you have for me he'll tell you himself find silence and stillness get into the word until you've heard from god and obey what he speaks you know when i seek jesus in the bible as i'm reading i'm all everything in my heart is just saying i just want to see jesus i just want to see him lord i have to get to you i have to find you i have to i have to i have to touch the hem of your robe i have to get to jesus i feel like sometimes those those men who they drilled a hole in the ceiling so they could lower their friend i just got i have to get to jesus and that's you right now i want to pray with you lord jesus i pray right now that your holy spirit would empower each and everyone watching this right now to obey your voice to know your voice to hear you very clearly lord embolden them holy spirit power from on high there's somebody watching me right now you were a preacher of the gospel and you you you were preaching you you were destined of god and you made some mistakes and you've stopped preaching and you're so tormented by the guilt and the shame can i just tell you something it's the devil who's the accuser not god be free from that today hear again the voice of god the voice of truth speaks a life the voice of truth ministers freedom there's a woman watching also um you're wearing something purple and i see that you once heard the voice of god with the prophetic gift and i don't know what happened but you've said lord you've removed the prophetic from me but that's not true that's not the voice of god that spoke that gifts in the caller without repentance thank you lord jesus say this with me say lord help me to recognize your voice in jesus name amen now stephen continues to play i just want to talk to you real quickly you know i've spoken to the to you maybe you've heard me make this this plea at the end of every video but you haven't gotten involved yet you know our ministry is growing every single week it's rapid growth right now and in order to keep up with all that god is doing we need more partners more supporters to help us i mean we're moving into a season now where we have to move into a brand new facility and more is coming of that we're gonna be able to reach more people for jesus than ever before you know the world needs jesus they need to hear the gospel and the gospel needs to be preached with truth we can't sugarcoat it we can't water down jesus died on a cross to save us from our sins and those who repent put their trust in jesus will be saved simple gospel that needs to be preached we are preaching that if you're if you are one who's kind of looked at the way the church has gone some other areas of the church said hi i'm uncomfortable with it i don't like the way it's going i i want to do something about it maybe you felt powerless to do something about the watering down of the gospel well you're not powerless you can do something you can sow into this ministry and propagate the true and full gospel with the power of the holy spirit backed by demonstration of a spirit become a 30 a month partner today for your gift of 30 or more a month we will send you a monthly update you're going to see every month what this ministry is doing you get um you get our e-newsletter you get teachings you get and we're also going to send you a copy of carriers of the glory remember when you partner with us be sure to sign up and when you sign up say you want a copy a signed copy i'll personally sign it for you signed copy of carriers of the glory i need you to partner with me today now those of you who are the spirit family spirit church is your church it's time to sow your ties and offerings do that today let this ministry continue to bless you and bless others as well maybe you're someone who's watched you say i can't partner and i this is not really my church the spirit church aspect but i like what the ministry is doing through evangelism through the encounter services to encounter tv and the edification through spirit church i mean those are the three main ministries worldwide television international events and global discipleship worldwide television through encounter tv international events to encounter services and global discipleship through spirit church you want to be a part of that you can give a gift of a hundred dollars fifty dollars twenty dollars some of you can do a thousand dollars and you're watching right now you know what god's speaking you to do i'm gonna ask you right now do it right now and god will surely bless you for it we'll be thankful we'll use your gift to continue to spread the gospel all around the world well that's it for this edition of spirit church thank you so much for watching and i want you to remember this until next time nothing is impossible with god

Channel: Encounter TV

Views: 480,098

Rating: 4.8673401 out of 5

Keywords: is this my thoughts or is god speaking, david diga hernandez, encounter tv, is htis my thoughts or is god speaking, how do i hear god speak to me, hearing the voice of the holy spirit, how to hear the holy spirit's voice, how do i hear god's voice, how to hear the voice of god, how to hear god speak to you, how to hear the voice of the holy spirit, hearing god's voice, is god speaking to me, god's voice vs your thoughts, how to hear god's voice clearly, Is god talking to me

Id: cemBIJpSV7Q

Length: 36min 56sec (2216 seconds)

Published: Wed Aug 26 2015