We can hear from God in many ways—the Bible, the Holy Spirit, in nature, through a trusted friend, family member, or counselor, for example. God doesn’t necessarily speak as a human would, so you might wonder how to know if you’re really hearing from God. The resources in this toolkit are intended as an aid to help you hear from God and discern the will of God as you seek to live in faith and obedience.
The process of discernment—hearing from God—is a spiritual practice, a means by which we grow in our faith and relationship with God. Here are a few ways that you might step into, or “try on,” discernment.
Related: Obeying what you hear from God can be really hard, but also worth it
Listening prayer: how to hear from God more clearly
“This is really important because as followers of Jesus, we all desire to do the right thing and make the wisest choices. Yet we are constantly being bombarded with the noise of the world all around us. There are lots of voices telling us very different messages, and too often we find ourselves challenged and confused about what we should do in a given situation or what is really the best way ahead. These are times when we can seek God’s guidance through listening prayer.” –Rev. Jim Harrison
This popular, personal, and practical resource outlines what the Bible says about listening to God in prayer and provides a guide for practicing listening prayer in a small group setting.
Discerning the will of God by tuning into the work of the Holy Spirit
“The Holy Spirit is an advocate, present to help us discover our place in God’s unfolding narrative. … Has the Holy Spirit ever gotten your attention in an extraordinary manner or after a time of extended prayer and stillness? When have you slowed down long enough to hear the Holy Spirit inquire about your life? What stirrings within nature have caused you to solely seek the Holy Spirit’s guidance?” –Rev. Jill Sweet
Three biblical figures—Moses, Elijah, and Mary—model postures that may help us tune into the work of the Holy Spirit today.
Declutter your spiritual life to help with spiritual discernment
“[We are called] to tell the truth, to root out whatever is harming or hindering our walk with God, and to continually revisit the spaces of our hearts and lives so that we don’t get cluttered up and lose the way again. These passages call us to listen for the sacred pulse, for God’s holy rhythms, and to return to those rhythms again and again so that we can dance with joy and freedom.” –Rev. April Fiet
This sermon walks through two Bible passages (Luke 15:1-10 and Exodus 32:7-14) to help us “look honestly at where we are and where God is calling us to be, and then making changes to get back on track.”
Training ourselves to listen well so we can hear from God
“Listening more directly to God often involves the practices of prayer and engaging Scripture, but it can also involve other disciplines such as silence and solitude. The guiding posture that shapes listening as a faith practice is an expectant longing that God, who spoke creation into existence, will continue to speak with us today in ways that we can receive and comprehend.” –Rev. Chris Schoon
As part of the Christian Reformed Church in North America’s Faith Practices Project, this section on listening well includes points to ponder, Scripture passages on listening, a resource list, and guides to listening well individually, with a group, or as a family.
Explore related spiritual practices
These spiritual practices intersect well with a posture of listening and may help with discerning the will of God.
“Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of the mind, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.”
–Romans 12:2
Group Discernment
Seeking guidance from God is not just an individual process. In fact, it rarely happens in isolation! Spiritual discernment happens in community, too, whether it’s related to a personal or collective step forward. These resources give pointers for discerning God’s will in a group context.
- Pursuing God’s Will Together by Ruth Haley Barton offers a new approach to decision-making and hearing from God, both for individual and communal settings. This guide to a transformational discernment practice is also available through season 3 of the “Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership” podcast.
- Practicing Listening With a Group: the Christian Reformed Church in North America offers tips and resources to practice listening—to one another and to God—in a variety of group settings.
- The Clearness Committee: a Quaker method of group discernment highlighted by Parker Palmer, in which committee members help the focus person “remove the interference so that they can discover their own wisdom from the inside out.”
- Spiritual retreats: intentional time to pray and discern. Spiritual retreats take on many forms. Explore this list of retreat centers (primarily in the U.S.) to discover some opportunities or spark ideas. This list is curated by the RCA’s Board of Benefits Services and originally offered to those in ministry in need of revitalization.
“Now the Lord came and stood there, calling as before, ‘Samuel! Samuel!’ And Samuel said, ‘Speak, for your servant is listening.’”
–1 Samuel 3:10
Media
- On the “Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership” podcast, Ruth Haley Barton and Steve Wiens discuss pursuing God’s will together.
- “Patient Trust” poem by Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
Further reading
- “Pursuing God’s Will Together” by Ruth Haley Barton
- “Listening Hearts: Discerning Call in Community” by Susan Farnham, Joseph Gill, R. Taylor McLean, and Susan M. Ward
- “Seeking God Together” by Alice Fryling
- “God Guides” by Mary Geegh
- “Listening to the Music of the Spirit: The Art of Discernment” by David Lonsdale
- “Let Your Life Speak: Listening to the Voice of Vocation” by Parker Palmer
- “A Hidden Wholeness: the Journey Toward an Undivided Life” by Parker Palmer
- “Hearing God: Developing a Conversational Relationship with God” by Dallas Willard
- “From Safe Space to Braves Spaces” chapter by Brian Arao and Kristi Clemens in “The Art of Effective Facilitation,” edited by Lisa M. Landreman
- “Becoming Brave: Finding the Courage to Pursue Racial Justice Now” by Brenda Salter McNeil
- “Choices: Making Right Decisions in a Complex World” by Lewis Smedes
Stories and articles on spiritual discernment
Stories, advice, and thought pieces about discernment and hearing from God
How We Discern and Dismantle Racism Through Prayer
An Adventure Tale: One Church’s Journey of Following Jesus in Mission
Our Church Started Settling then Caught a Vision for Hope
Parting to Pursue God: The Importance of Discernment In Times of Division
Knowing God’s Will in an Us/Them World
How Hearts and Attitudes Changed During Disagreement
Discerning How To Be the Family of God
Three Things to Consider When You Want to Start Something New
Why Centering Prayer? Biblical Grounding for Finding Rest in God
Personal calling stories
People share how they have received guidance from God in discerning their vocation
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