After being raised Southern Baptist, I spent most of my teens, 20s, and 30s in more charismatic churches. Some people around me claimed to hear God every time they asked. Every time they prayed. Every time they glanced upward. But not me. Could it be sin? Maybe. Who could rule this out? Could it be I have not learned to distinguish between the whispering Spirit and my own thoughts? Probably. Or maybe it is something else. All I know is that I have a major issue with two types of Christians: (1) the one who simply reads the Scripture and doesn’t think that they need anything else (a fresh touch, a fresh word, an encounter), and (2) the one who thinks God speaks around every corner ten times a day.
May the Lord speak. Jesus did clearly affirm: “My sheep hear My voice” (John 10:27 ESV). What is there to argue?
May I hear Him more often than I do. He is the teacher; I am not. He is Lord; I am not. I pray the same for you if you are a Christian. Oh, what sound is sweeter than the infinite personal triune God speaking/whispering/singing into a human heart? In the words of the grasshopper and honey guy: “The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete. He must become greater; I must become less” (John 3:29–30).
BJ Condrey, Ph.D. 