The completion of my book, Want to Hear God, Connect with Him in Prayer is almost here!  I have been thinking about each of you as I finish. I  want to support you in your journey to hear God and my book shares the prayer conversations of people who have practiced 12 different practices in the intimate walk with God.  It got me wondering about each of you.  We have walked together for quite a while.  How, when and where do you hear God?

How do you hear God?

In this rational culture, it is perfectly fine to pray to God.  In fact, we often hear others ask, “Will you pray for me?”

However, how often to you hear others share what they hear from God? As a friend of mine said, “Am I weird?”  Of course not. Lily Tomlin has a quote in which she talks about the wise person praying and how crazy that person is when they hear something back!

How do you hear God?  How do you know He is speaking to you?

For me personally, I hear Him speak often through the scriptures, such as in the prayer of lectio divina.  I will soon have a 5-Day Challenge coming up that you can join that gives you an opportunity to immerse yourself in the practice of lectio divina, listening for God to speak through the scriptures.   Watch for that challenge in the next couple of weeks.

When do you hear God? 

Perhaps there is a time of day that you feel He speaks more directly to you.  Some of my friends talk about hearing Him more clearly in the early morning hours before others in their house get up and things are noisy.  Since I am a morning person, I prefer the early morning hours.  He and I can chat well at this time of day.

Others prefer listening more carefully to His voice when running or gardening or walking in nature.  The act of movement gives them an opportunity to be distracted from other things and focus on God.

Another time to hear God seems to be in the evening before going to bed.  The Examen, a prayer practice of questions to help you review your day, helps notice when you felt close to God and when you felt far away. Those questions can include:

1. What was I most grateful for today?
2. What was I least grateful for today?
3. Where did I see God at work in my life?
4. What did I notice today about God that I want to take into tomorrow?

You can also download this practice as an app for your phone from Reimagining the Examen.

Where do you hear God?

Where to hear God is often closely tied to when you hear God.  For me, nature is a favorite place to hear God.  I love getting out along the shoreline of a lake or even the ocean.  The ocean is more challenging since I am landlocked.  However, I can go anywhere in my imagination.  Imaginary prayer lets me meet Jesus in any place I can imagine.

My friends often talk about hearing God while they are driving.  They turn off all music distractions and chat with Him while driving.  I know I used to do that while commuting.

My hope for you is to join me

If any of these practices sound inviting, then I hope you’ll join me in my next adventure.

My first invitation to you is to say yes to joining my book launch team and be part of new connections of a community of people who will share what God is doing in their lives through prayer.

Reply to this blog and say yes Nancy, I want to be part of your book launch team, starting April 6th. Let’s get the word out how God wants to connect in prayer. Send me more information.

My new book – Want to Hear God, Connect with Him in Prayer will come out May 1.  I would love to have you join my launch team to help get the word out about my book.  You would buy the book, receive a pdf copy of my book as well, review it, and join with others in telling what you like about it.  We’ll have fun with the team as we share what God is saying to us through these prayer conversations and practices from the book. I’ll be in touch.

Join the adventure.  Let’s see what God will do!  I look forward to hearing from you.

Blessings,

Nancy