Ask, and then listen. Breakthrough Prayer.

The voice of the Lord is over the waters; the God of glory thunders. . .                  The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is majestic. . .                 The voice of the Lord strikes with flashes of lightning.                                                     The voice of the Lord shakes the desert. . . And in His temple all cry, "Glory!" from Psalm 29

Prayer makes an impression.  It impresses Heaven; that is, our prayers of faith  make an impression on God.  ‘Must have faith . . . because without faith, it is impossible to please God; whereas, with faith, we can say to that mountain, ‘Be moved,’ and it will be moved into the sea.1  

The children of God are impressed when they hear the voice of God.  That hearing makes an indelible impression that cannot be denied, and will never be forgotten.  But to hear the voice of God, we must train ourselves to listen.

How does God speak?

>in a still, small voice

>through Scripture

>through other believers - including messages from the pulpit

>visions - when awake

>dreams - when asleep

>circumstances - opened or closed doors; serendipitous meetings

>a "knowing" in our innermost being

When God speaks, he expresses his mind, his character, and his purposes--and his leading will always be consistent with Scripture.  He will not shout at us though, in order to get word in . . .   We need to give much time to communicate with the Holy Spirit.  He will not speak to anyone who is in a hurry.2  God is a gentleman and will not break the door down to get our attention, so we do well to obey--"Be still, and know that I am God."3  Ah, therein lies the 'catch' for most of us. . . it takes discipline to be still, and to quiet our minds.

Once still, we ought ask the Lord daily to teach us the right way to live.  God has an answer to every challenge we face, and he will reveal it to us as we pray in a childlike fashion---expectant he will answer.  Think of it--when your small child asks a question, walking alongside of you, holding your hand, she looks up at you and expects you to answer … right?  And you want to answer her because you love her … right?  Then, will your Heavenly Father answer you when you ask questions for direction, or when you ask him for guidance, or when you need to know he is there?  Of course, he will!  But we have to look and listen for his answers.

Our struggle is to slow down long enough to spend time with God to do two things:  ask and listen.  Oft the Israelites walked in foolishness, but at times their childishness rendered great wisdom, such as when their leaders approached Jeremiah with: “Pray that the Lord your God will tell us where we should go and what we should do.”4, 5

I have taught the usage of an acronym to order personal prayer time.  A.C.A.T.  I have added an "L" to my acronym - Adoration, Confession, Listening, Asking, Thanking. To my written prayer--after Adoration and Confession, I write a script "L" (like the one LaVerne had on her sweater) L and then I am still. If I am seeking direction for a decision or circumstance, I ask God to speak to me--and then, I am quiet for a little while, which includes quieting my mind. Sometimes, a verse comes to mind, sometimes an impression, sometimes nothing . . . and that is okay. Then too I try to create other 'quiet' in my day for the Lord to get a word in edgewise--I turn off my radio in the car . . . I go for a walk outside with no i-pod. . . in other words, I make decisions to 'be still' throughout my day. It is my desire to 'abide in Him' as I do life.

Create some quiet in your day, and 'be still, and know that he is God.'  Ask, and then listen.

Grace and peace to you,

Christine

1 Matthew 21.21

2 David Wilkerson

3 Psalm 46.10

4 Jim Cymbala, Breakthrough Prayer, pp.56-57