The first few podcast episodes I did were primarily based on articles I’ve written either on my Substack or on my website. Going forward and starting with episodes 8-10, I’ll be writing an article / post related to the topics I talk about on my podcast. In some cases I may post an article before I do a podcast about it, we’ll see how it goes. And I won’t be writing exactly what’s in the podcast, though they’ll be very similar.
So, in episode 8 I mostly discussed why would we want to hear God’s voice? I know that before I became a believer, I was afraid of hearing from Him because I was afraid he’d yell at me. I think some of that is based on how we’re raised and our relationship with our earthly fathers. My father was great in some ways, and very critical and not so great in other respects. He passed away in 1990, which is part of what put me on my spiritual journey. I considered myself agnostic through the latter part of the 1990s, but then decided I did believe in God but not in “organized religion”. I’m still not a big fan of “organized religion”, but I am a Christian.
I saw this image on social media and saved it. It gives the attributes of God’s voice vs that of the devil. It can be helpful for discernment, and is one way to see that it’s “safe” to want to hear from God.
By way of a couple personal stories on this topic, I believe that I have heard the audible voice of God (or Jesus, or the Holy Spirit) a few times, but the last time was 19 years ago. Back in the late 1990s I was exploring some new-age teachings and every now and then I would hear a male voice behind me, like in the next room or somewhere close by would call my first name. I’d look around and didn’t see anyone there. It didn’t happen often, maybe 3 or 4 times I guess, over the course of a couple years. Then, I don’t remember exactly when it was, but I had started to read the New Testament and I got to the passage in the book of John where it says: “But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. John 10:2-3 (ESV). “ When I read that I realized that was who had been calling my name! I never had that happen again after that.
To continue reading, please see the original post at https://ciawatson.substack.com/p/hearing-gods-voice-part-1
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