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HE SPEAKS THROUGH HIS STILL SMALL VOICE
“My sheep hear My voice and I know them and they follow
Me.” (John 10:27 NKJV) “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, a fire; but the
Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire, a still small
voice...Elijah heard it...And, suddenly a voice came to him,
and said, What are you doing Elijah?...” (1 Kings
19:11,12,13 NKJV)
Other than seeing Jesus, there is nothing more precious to a
Christian’s life than hearing His still small voice. To
think that He can live within our hearts is amazing, but to
know He also SPEAKS there is wonderful. He lives inside,
and no matter how far away eternity is, He will not leave or
forsake us. One can be locked up in the darkness of a room
and have complete fellowship with Him. What a gracious God
we serve!
There are two main ways to hear Him within our thoughts: to
our mind, and through our mind. They are not the same.
Hearing His still small voice TO our mind is a totally
unbiased, objective experience. Our personality has no
involvement in what He says, or when He says it. An example
is being in a room with someone, while having your eyes
closed. You do not know if that person will say something,
and if he does, you do not know what will be said or when.
There is no control over the speaker, there is no
involvement in what, when or if he speaks. This way of
hearing bypasses the soul or personality, because there is
no personal involvement. When the Lord speaks, it is a gift
— a gift of approach into your world, your private space.
The other way of hearing the Lord is THROUGH our
thoughts. Through our thoughts is subjective, meaning with
involvement of our soul or personality. Many have thought
they heard the Lord’s still small voice, when in reality it
was their own thoughts. The Lord does speak to us through
our thoughts, also inspires them, but this is not hearing
His still small voice. The Lord speaking to us through our
thoughts is in the section about
Inspired Minds.
It is easy for Christians who are first hearing Him to fall
into error, simply because they have not yet heard His still
small voice enough times TO KNOW THAT THEY KNOW they are
hearing Him and not their own thoughts.
It is not easy to describe His still small voice because it
is without sound. However I will try to explain the way His
voice sounds to me! In listening to any kind of thought, I
do not hear voice patterns, pitch, timbre, tone or depth
within my mind. I merely hear thoughts. His voice
“sounds” the same as my thoughts. I can receive emotion
from what I hear, and can also figure out by the message how
the Lord is feeling sometimes, but still there is no pitch
in hearing His still small voice. The only complete
distinction in hearing my thoughts vs. His voice is 100
percent unbiased objectivity. I RECOGNIZE what I’ve just
heard is not a part of myself. It was not formulated from
my own mind or personality.
I was a Christian for several years before I had the
privilege to hear Him in this way. I think some are like
me, either not knowing He can speak to us this way, or not
recognizing Him when He does speak. His voice is so quiet,
sometimes I haven’t noticed He has spoken until AFTER He has
said something. It is the same as being involved in the
deep reverie of your own thoughts, and someone speaks into
your world. You don’t notice that something has been spoken
until after something was said, and you tune in. When this
happens you also have to tune in by trying to recall what
you just heard.
Many, are like me who have lived in such “noise” they
cannot hear the silence of His voice. Noise comes in many
fashions and modes. The foundation of all noise is the
word DISTRACTION.
Ps 46:10 NKJV
Be still , and know that I am God; I will be exalted
among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!
Ps 4:4 NKJV
...commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be
still. Selah....
The easiest way I have heard Him is to be literally at rest,
and in silence — in other words, resting in bed. The
attitude of being quiet is not to say He is asking us to
live monk style lives in silent meditation. However it is
true when we live cluttered lives it is very difficult to
hear His still small voice during the day when we are first
learning.
CLICK HERE TO READ RHEMA WITH HIS STILL SMALL VOICE
HE SPEAKS IN 1ST PERSON
When the Lord speaks to me it is in four distinct ways:
first, second, third and fourth person! In English
grammar, “first person” refers to the speaker as the
personality being reflected. Words like “I” are spoken.
When the Lord speaks in first person, it is what the Bible
calls mouth to mouth, even apparent speech. “With him
will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in
dark speeches...” (Num 12:8) Moses was the friend of
God, and the Lord spoke to him in direct speech.
As a personal example of this kind of speech; one time I was
camping and wearily falling into my sleeping bag, I said to
the Lord, “Lord I really want to hear You tonight but I also
really want to sleep as I’m so tired!” I was used to
hearing from Him at night, and that is why I prayed that
prayer. But when I prayed it, I was just praying it, not
expecting Him to say anything back to me. I heard His still
small voice say, “I AM with you.” When I heard this,
it was such a very tender moment and I was deeply touched
even though it was such a simple Word for Him to say. I
thought about it later as to why such a simple Word would
touch me so. I guess it is because what I said to Him was
just a passing conversation, but He not only cared enough
to listen to what I had to say, but also acknowledged it,
even though what I had to say to Him was not exactly an
earth-moving statement! He is so big and we are so small,
and He really cares how we feel.
Another example was when I was doing dishes and just minding
my own business, not really thinking about anything. His
still small voice interrupted my quiet space and said, “I
love you.” Talk about a heart melter! So precious!
Although I am accustomed to hearing His voice, both of these
times were so precious to me. One, because I was not
expecting Him to reach out to me. And two, because they had
such a profound and comforting touch upon my heart. Only
the Lord can bring such simplicity and yet give such a deep
sense of life giving Words. When we hear Him in first
person, it is a real treasure. Even though I hear His still
small voice a lot, I do not hear Him speak to me in first
person very often. It is a very personal and intimate
comfort when He does.
HE
SPEAKS IN 2ND PERSON
Num 12:8 AMP
With him I speak mouth to mouth [directly], clearly and
not in dark speeches; and he beholds the form of the Lord.
Why then were you not afraid to speak against My servant
Moses?
Hearing the Lord’s still small voice in second person is
hearing riddled or dark speech. As opposed to first person
in English grammar, second person does not refer to the
speaker, (as in using words like I and my) and when I hear
Him speak to me in this way, He merely states a riddle. The
understanding of His riddles is not an instant process.
Riddles need an understanding of
allegorical language
built through the
quickening and
revelation
of His Spirit.
An example of this kind of speech is: “Mike, the Statue
of Liberty.” (Name changed) I heard Him speak this to
me about a friend’s husband. He had fallen away from the
Lord and was given over to many captivities and decay. When
I heard the Lord share this with me, He unveiled the beauty
of His Word. The Statue of Liberty is a monument to freedom
that had become cracked and decayed. However, under a great
amount of work, it was later repaired and restored. He was
going to do the same for Mike. What beautiful promises He
speaks!
Other examples of riddled speech: one time I was praying for
a minister and the Lord said, “His shoes are too small.”
I knew that the Lord wanted to extend his foundations by way
of ministry. Another time I was supposed to be in a season
of rest, but I was very restless. I heard the Lord ask me,
“Have you ever seen someone wrestle their nightgown?”
It was His tongue in cheek way of saying I was doing
anything but rest! Another time, I was earnestly waiting
for some specific direction and was hearing nothing. He
finally said, “A set of directions depends on the wind
going to the right or to the left.” (Isaiah 30:21) I
suddenly realized the reason I wasn’t receiving any
directions was because He wasn’t changing direction!
Another time I heard the Lord say, “Next time you need
comfort, don’t fall so far away from the tree.” This
was a word of wisdom and also a subtle rebuke from the
Lord. The morning after I heard that, I knew a gal had
received a rebuke from the Lord through an elder and instead
of repenting and receiving the comfort, wisdom and kindness
that I knew the elder would give... she defended herself and
ran away.
John 3:20-21 NKJV
For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not
come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he
who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be
clearly seen, that they have been done in God.
WHY DOES GOD SPEAK RIDDLES?
Here are various reasons why the Lord chooses to speak
riddles:
1. So the hearer will immediately recognize the thought as
totally distinct from his own.
2. To give “meat” to chew, to teach the process of
discernment and revelation.
3. To train the hearer not to be impulsive in
interpretation!
4. To give the hearer confidence in the sovereignty of
God. (HE speaks it, and it will happen HIS way.)
5. To give reason for complete reliance upon Him for
understanding or interpretation as opposed to the
independence that plain speech gives.
6. To train the hearer to WAIT upon Him.
7. To unveil the truth, in the fullness of time.
(Not prematurely disclosed.)
CLICK HERE TO READ MISC RHEMA WITH DARK SPEECH
HE SPEAKS IN 3RD PERSON
Third person is not about the speaker or the hearer, but
about another. When I hear His still small voice in third
person, it is what the Bible calls “perceiving men’s
thoughts.”
Luke 5:22-23 NKJV
But when Jesus perceived their thoughts, He answered and
said to them, "Why are you reasoning in your hearts?”
Matt 9:4 NKJV
But Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said, "Why do you
think evil in your hearts?
Ps 139:2 NKJV
You know my sitting down and my rising up; You understand
my thought afar off.
Heb 4:12 NKJV
For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper
than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of
soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a
discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
It is important to understand this gift is not horizontal.
The relationship of hearing is not an “ability to tune into
man.” That is the counterfeit. Rather, as I am tuned into
the Lord, HE speaks His still small voice of someone else’s
motives or even feelings. It is HIS voice, but I understand
the Lord has revealed the intents and motives of another for
His specific purpose.
The story of Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5 is a scriptural
example of Peter perceiving their thoughts and motives,
through the Holy Spirit.
Elisha the prophet could hear and see what was spoken behind
closed doors. This was done through the gift of the Holy
Spirit that makes all things manifest.
2 Kings 6:12 NKJV
And one of his servants said, "None, my lord, O king; but
Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of
Israel the words that you speak in your bedroom."
When I hear the Lord this way, often I have been in prayer
over a person and suddenly I will hear “them” say something
about the subject of what I was praying. I am not hearing
the person themselves speak to me, but the Lord has opened
up the heart of that person’s need and I am hearing their
spirit speak. (We as people are triune, composed of body,
soul and spirit.)
1 Thess 5:23 NKJV
Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely;
and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved
blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Other times I might receive a flash of a person come to my
mind and at the same time I will hear their needs so I can
pray.
When I hear the Lord in 3rd person about someone
else, I have noticed that it does not always reflect only
one person. He may speak it as though it refers to one
person, but when I begin to apply it, I realize it is about
several people or it may be as large as a reference to the
body of Christ. When I am identifying seasons, it often
comes from these kinds of Words.
An example of this kind of hearing: (and it may sound
unusual to you, but it was the Lord) I heard the Lord say,
“How are you? I am very tired.” When I heard this I
began praying for all those I could think of, as I realized
they were weary and needed a strengthening from the Lord.
Later I heard confirmations from several people that said
that particular week was very physically exhausting for much
of the body of Christ.
he speaks in 4th person
I know there’s no such thing as 4th person in English
grammar, but I don’t know what else to call it! This “4th”
person is when I hear His still small voice simultaneously
superimposed over another’s voice. It happens at the exact
same time I hear another speak, and it is only a word, line
or sentence. All of a sudden the volume goes up on my
actual physical hearing by several decibels on a particular
word, line or sentence. It is a physical hearing, but I
also hear His inner voice at the same time. I can be in a
large crowd, in another room, or outside near groups of
people, and all of a sudden the volume goes up on only a
portion of some sentence. The ‘volume’ of my physical
hearing is not altered by how loud someone speaks. The
volume is affected because I hear two people speak at once -
the Lord and the person. Once I realize it is the Lord
speaking to me, I take the time to ponder what I just heard,
then apply it.
As an example of such, I had been concerned about a
misunderstanding I’d had with another person. I had really
been praying about it, knowing there was little I could do
except pray. I heard the Lord say, “I’ll take care of it.”
Then a while later as I was still fussing about it, I
overheard a line on the news, where someone said, “It’s
behind us now.” At the same time the newscaster said that
phrase, I heard His still small voice say the same thing
superimposed over it. With His superimposing, it sounded as
though the volume on the TV had gone up for just that
sentence, although I knew it had not. With this second
confirmation, I was finally able to stop fussing and find
peace about the situation.
Another time, I was in a Chinese restaurant and I heard a
lady several tables away say, “It’s time for a change.”
I heard the Lord’s voice say the same thing at the same time
she said that. My impression of her voice went up several
decibels on that phrase, and even though she had been
talking before and after that phrase, only that phrase stuck
out because the Lord’s voice brought emphasis upon it. I
understood from this that a change would shortly be coming
and to accept it when it came. Shortly after that, I
reorganized this book for better flow and order and in the
process it was in quite a state of upheaval. I remembered
that Word and it gave me confirmation that even though
things looked in disarray, the Lord saw this ahead of time
and He would help me through it.
I have been in prayer rooms where many people are speaking
in tongues at the same time. Occasionally the Lord would
literally raise the volume on one or two sentences of what
someone just said in tongues, and at the same time I heard
His still small voice superimposed over their sentences and
His interpretation of what they were speaking.
CLICK HERE FOR RHEMA ABOUT SUPERIMPOSED
HE SPEAKS THROUGH HIS inner audible VOICE
There is another way He speaks to us on the inside that is
not so still and not so small. I have heard others refer to
it as His inner audible voice. I have heard Him speak this
way several times, and it is quite loud, with definite
emotion, and it sounds like it is outside the ear, but it
really is not. Contrary to His still small voice, His inner
audible voice has pitch, timber, emotion and decibels.
One example that comes to mind is a good one for several
reasons. First, it proves that we can hear the Lord even
when we are not at rest, not quiet and are not pausing! I
was “cosmic bowling” with my son and a group of teens one
night. The bowling pins and our clothes glowed in the dark
from ultraviolet lights, the strobe lights were flashing,
and circling rainbow strobes were filtering through a layer
of “fog” over the area. Of course, this was all really neat
— except for the blaring stereo speakers directly behind
me! My innards were shaking from the sound and I could
hardly believe I used to dance to this kind of noise when I
was a teen!
As I was getting ready for my turn to bowl, I heard the Lord
say very loud, (it’s a good thing He did!) on the inside of
my thoughts, “Chosen one.” It was so out of character for
where I was that I laughed out loud (not that anyone could
have heard me!) I immediately remembered the scripture that
says: “I can never be lost to your Spirit! I can never get
away from my God! If I go up to heaven, you are there; it I
go down to the place of the dead, you are there.” (Psalm
139: 7-8 TLB) As I thought of that verse, laughingly I said
back to Him, “Lord even in here You are with me!”
GOD SPEAKS THROUGH the holy spirit
“...your body is the home of the Holy Spirit God gave
you, and He that lives within you... So use every part of
your body to give glory back to God...For you are God’s
temple, the home of the living God, and God has said of you,
“I will live in them, and walk among them, and I will be
their God and they shall be my people.” (1 Corinthians
6:19,20 TLB / 2 Corinthians 6:16B TLB)
When we hear the Lord’s still small voice, He speaks INSIDE
of us. We are actually hearing the Holy Spirit, Who lives
deep inside. Tuning in is the key to hearing Him through
His Spirit. Tuning in is not a ritualistic form of
meditation, although meditation (pondering) upon His Word is
great. Rather, tuning in is bringing into focus what is
happening. It is a recognition of what is going on instead
of just mundanely living life’s routine. We are fearfully
and wonderfully made, (Psalm 139:14) and we house the very
God of the universe within. Jesus said, “The Spirit of
Truth, Whom the world cannot receive (welcome, take to its
heart), because it does not see Him, nor know and recognize
Him. But you know and recognize Him, for He lives with you
[constantly] and will be in you....and My Father will love
him, and We will come to him and make Our home (abode,
special dwelling place) with him.” (John 14:17, 23 AMP) What
a privilege! How He wants to increase our measure of
hearing Him!
HE SPEAKS THROUGH OPENING our literal EARS
Job was speaking to the Lord, “I have heard of You by the
hearing of the ear, But now my eye sees You.” (Job 42:5
NKJV)
In the same manner of literal seeing, it is possible to hear
His audible voice, angelic voices, heavenly music, etc.
through our literal ears. Anna and a friend were worshipping
the Lord while traveling. Afterwards they sat in silence
basking in the Lord’s Presence. Both of them suddenly heard
a heavenly choir. Each thought the other had turned on a
cassette tape.
Another time Anna was driving late at night after a storm
and as she rounded a blind corner, she heard a voice YELL in
her ear, “SLOW DOWN!” She slammed on her brakes and
suddenly a huge tree loomed across the road. She had slowed
just enough to swerve on to the shoulder and miss it.
The Lord opened my ears and I heard a beautiful trumpet
fanfare. When it finished, I saw a vision of the heavens
open and heard and saw His rain pour in a mighty gush. He
gave that to me in context to a promise of His rains
coming. (The pouring out of His Spirit, as in Joel 2.)
I have had many experiences when the Lord has opened my
literal ears while I am hearing Him. I heard canning jars
moving around on shelves, when He was talking to me about
journaling and preserving His Words for another generation.
Another time the Lord opened my ears and I literally heard
the shouts of a crowd chanting Glory! Glory! Glory! Glory!
[These shouts were punctuated in 2 syllables: Glor – ee!
Glor – ee! Glor – ee! Glor – ee!] Then I heard His still
small voice say, “How much is supernatural? All of it.”
I have heard door bells, phones, train whistles, angels
singing, and other experiences, all within the context of
the Words the Lord was speaking to me.
One time I heard the Lord ask me in His still small voice,
“How may I help you?” And then later that night He opened
my ears and I literally heard a man’s voice standing at the
foot of my bed, and He said, “Good Morning!” His
voice was SO cheerful and had been waiting for me to
stir awake so that we could commune together. That night
was a precious night. One of the things He said was that He
lived inside of me and waited every day to commune with me.
It was so precious.
CLICK HERE FOR RHEMA WITH OPENED EARS
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