Speak Lord, for your servant is listening

We heard a sermon at my brother's church based on 1 Samuel 3, the story of God speaking to Samuel while he was sleeping three times before he realised it was God and was ready to listen. I was a little worried about the content of the sermon when the pastor was opening up our minds about how we can all hear from God, and that we just need to listen. Thankfully he clarified in the second half of the sermon that we need to exercise discernment to know if it is in fact God speaking. If we are not discerning enough, we could read into any thought, idea, or 'sign', and claim it were from God.

I thought I'd share the four ways to find out if it is God's voice (based on Bill Hybels' book, The Power of a Whisper):

1) Pray. Ask God if it is really from him.

2) Is it Scriptural? Make sure you know the scriptures well so that you can discern this.

3) Is it wise? Make sure you weigh this according to God's wisdom, not the world's wisdom.

4) Is it in tune with my own character?

5) What do people you most trust think about it? i.e. people who you know fear the Lord and will challenge you if necessary.

I pray that God opens my ears to hear his voice and to honestly say what Samuel said, verse 9 "Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening".