Prayer and Listening to God

“I believe that prayer should be as much about listening to God as it is about talking to him.”

Listen to popular Christian radio, take a walk down the aisles of most Christian bookstores, or do a Google search on the topic and this is the sentiment and belief you're sure to hear. That's because it's what the Bible teaches, right? It's certainly what a large segment of the Church has come to accept. But believe it or not, there was a time (and amazingly, not that long ago) that this claim would have been rejected and would have brought quick correction. Why not these days? Has the church learned something new-- or have we forgotten something we used to know?

It's the latter that is true. I'm not alone in saying so; the record of Church history and the Bible, and fortunately, a growing number of people speaking on this issue today, agree. We're up against a battle, though. A lot of attractive people hold conferences and write books that promote just the sentiment quoted above. It's a difficult thing to talk to people about, especially when one does not write books or speak at national conferences.

But the Bible tells us, if we are willing to hear what it says, just what God wants his people to know about prayer and listening to God. What we believe about prayer is really, really important. What we believe about it will determine how and why we pray. We must gain the knowledge we need to discern whether popular authors like Priscilla Shirer and Henry Blackaby are right in what they claim. We must determine if it's possible that the wool has been pulled over our eyes concerning this whole idea of hearing God's voice in prayer.

It's not a simple issue in our day and time. Much has been mistaught (as I'll provide examples to show in later posts). It takes a lot of words to accurately convey what the Scriptures teach on this. As with all doctrine, the doctrine of prayer and of how God guides his people won't be grasped simplistically or overnight. But over the course of some upcoming blog posts, I'd like to offer some things for people to consider, chew on, go prayerfully to key Scriptures about.

Next post, "A Definition of Prayer," something we may think we've had down pat, but could find surprising in some ways.

(This is Part 1 of a series of posts on Prayer and Listening to God. Click here for Part 2).