While pastoring on campus several years ago, one of our members shared a testimony of her experience in the exam hall that was rather enlightening. According to her; “In the midst of my examination, I got hooked. Then, the voice of Pastor sounded in my ears, and that was my opening to the divine direction I needed for the exam. I came out excellenly well.”
Friend, you need to know how to follow the voice of God. Learning to follow the voice of God is enhanced by learning to hear the voice of fathers and authority figures in your life (1 Samuel 3:9). God often connects us to the prophetic by first connecting us to the practical. He uses the familiar to relate the unfamiliar to us. You cannot claim to hear the voice of the invisible God if you do not listen to the voice of the visible authority figures in your life.
Like Samuel, God uses the voice of authority figures in our lives; parents, pastors, destiny fathers, etc. to culture our spirit and to position us for His own voice (1 Samuel 3:4-5). Be careful of any ‘Christian’ who disregards the voice of fathers, pastors, etc. in his life but claims to hear the voice of God. Most times, he is either under the influence of the voice of his mind or strange demonic voices.
There is a connection between your openness to the voice of your teachers and your ability to trap and tap into divine leading (Isaiah 30:20-21). Who is that person in your life that God has positioned around you to open you up to the flow of His communication to you? What’s your posture, positioning, disposition, and response to that person?
What’s your relationship with the word of God – the Bible? If you are the type that do not pay attention to the written word, you are not likely to hear the voice (spoken word) of God to you (Psalms 29:3, Isaiah 8:19-20). If you are disobedient to the physical shepherd (the local church pastor), don’t ever claim that you are following Jesus, the Chief Shepherd (Hebrews 13:7, 17).
The young boy Samuel became a major prophet hearing from God and speaking for God simply by being open and obedient to the voice of Eli, the authority figure that God placed in his life. For you to have the tongue of the learned, you must have the heart of a listener and a follower (Isaiah 50:4-6). May you recognize your teachers and respond appropriately today.
‘Demola Awoyele
Lead Pastor,
Destiny Impact Church
Akure, Nigeria