Freedom for Ladies: A Journey to Freedom in ChristSample

Learning to Listen to the Holy Spirit

One of our ladies in our freedom study shared this:

“The first time I realized I was hearing the Lord’s voice was in the middle of the night while nursing my firstborn daughter, who never slept well her first year of life. I would rock and rock her, afraid my husband wouldn’t get enough sleep before he started another 30-hour shift. In the dead of night, the Lord would speak to me. Sometimes it was through internal conviction, at other times through Scriptures. And almost always, He showed me people to pray for. It took me almost a year to discover that what made this possible was simply getting still and quiet to make space for Him to speak. I doubted it was really Him at first, but He would find ways to prove it to me. For example, a verse that He would give me in the night would show up in three other random places the next day while out running errands. Even better would be when the person He laid on my heart to pray for would text and ask me to pray for them—and I would somehow already know of the need. Hearing His voice is a beautiful thing!”

Learning to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit has been the biggest asset of my Christian walk. Running to Him in prayer, asking many questions, looking for guidance, and waiting on His voice—it’s been epic for me. The way the Holy Spirit solves our prayer requests is like a puzzle for me. I might hear one word from the Holy Spirit. Then I go and search in the Scriptures to see what He might be saying. I’ve learned to wait until I hear from the Spirit, by being still and letting Him speak. It wasn’t automatic; it took a while for me to begin to hear. The best advice I received from a pastor some years ago was about the how and the when of the Holy Spirit. If He is asking you to do something, ask Him, “How do you want me to do this?” For the timing, ask, “When do I move forward?” This has been a game changer for me, as letting the Holy Spirit solve the mystery has brought many miracles to our family and my personal life.

Pray:

Lord, please speak to me. I want to hear Your voice and know it’s You. Give me the desire to be still and the desire to keep pressing into Your Spirit.

Be Still:

As you sit still, ask God to speak to you about how much He loves you. Ask the Lord what He was thinking when He made you. Sit and listen. Ask Him to help you discern His voice.