Hearing God’s Voice Series | Part 1

Human beings have many instinctual desires that need to be met physically. Take hunger for example: When was the last time you didn’t eat for a long duration of time? I don’t know about you, but I turn into a ravenous beast on the prowl looking for some meat! My focus is consumed with satisfying that craving and I won’t stop until it happens. The pain in my stomach reminds me of the reality that I need food. Food will give me the nourishment and the fuel to keep on moving and to, ultimately, live.

Is it possible to hunger for God?

Just as God has equipped our physical bodies to long for food, I believe He has given each person a longing for the divine. This is so because we are created in God’s image (Genesis 1:27) and we have ‘eternity set in our hearts’ – that is, the awareness that there is ‘something more’ than what we can see (Ecclesiastes 3:11).  For those of us who have accepted Christ as our Lord and Savior, we have the Holy Spirit to teach us all things (John 14:26) and who gives us life (John 6:63). The Holy Spirit is given to each believer to be in continual communion with a relational God. It is He who loves us and has created us for a purpose greater than ourselves before we get to heaven (Ephesians 2:10).

Isn’t that exciting? The God of the universe wants you to know Him! The Father has made a way for you to get personal with Him who speaks to you about your identity, calling, and cares in this world.

Yet, here’s the reality that too many of us face … we don’t have that hunger for God. When we think about longing, it’s more realistic to want what we currently don’t have rather than desire intentional time spent in God’s Presence. We think of God mainly in terms of activity (I go to church) rather than intimacy (worshipping God when no one is around). What has happened?

Being a Pastor, I’ve visited people in the hospital who are in their final weeks of living. One of the key indications that they are going to pass soon is that they stop eating or drinking. Why? The patients claim they are not hungry or thirsty. It’s as if their body knows that they are not growing or living anymore, so their mind doesn’t remind their body that they need sustenance.

What if we were made to hunger for more of God but we’ve been starving our soul? In other words, it is as if spiritually we are dying and we do not know it because we have not hungered for God’s Presence for quite some time. We do not realize what our soul needs because we have blocked hearing what the Spirit is saying; longing for us to desire Him.

You might say, “What would be blocking me from hungering for more of God?” I ask that you read this sample list prayerfully and ask the Holy Spirit what stands out to you:

• Distractions – You know what you should do, but other concerns are vying for your attention.  

• Busyness – There’s always somewhere to go, a meeting to be in, a “to-do” list to complete that competes for your time.

• Boredom – You’ve been in church for awhile, so you know the Bible stories. The problem is, you associate a relationship with God as doing church or ministry.

• Bitterness – You’ve been hurt. Plain and simple. It could be God didn’t come through for you or someone backstabbed you. You have a hard time trusting God so you don’t want to know what He has to say.

In order to hear the Holy Spirit’s voice, we need to rid ourselves of anything blocking us from wanting more of God. He will not shout above competing voices; love calls gently and whispers to us. Is it quiet enough to hear what the Holy Spirit is saying?

“As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?” (Psalm 42:1-2).

What a beautiful image! As you can sense from the Psalm above, David wanted more of God’s Presence. Whether he was in the valley or on the mountaintop, he wanted more. His relationship with God was so personal and authentic, that the main reason David became king was that, “he was a man after God’s heart” (1 Samuel 13:14). He hungered to hear what God was saying.

Regardless of where you are at in your walk with God, you still have access to hear His voice. Our God is a gracious God! You can say, “Holy Spirit, help me identify areas of blockage that might be causing me to not hunger for more of God’s heart.” If anything is revealed to you, confess it to the Lord and allow any healing needed to take place. Do not give into guilt or shame, for that is a scheme of the enemy. Instead, find moments to be renewed and refreshed in God’s Presence. You will find, as you hunger for more, He will reveal more to you about who He is and what He has to say to you.