HOW TO HEAR FROM GOD 2 - GBENGA OSHOWOLE

Modes of Hearing from God.
 God speaks to us through our spirit man because he is spirit and we are also spirit. When we talk about mode we mean various ways in which He communicates to us based on the dynamics of his fellowship with us. All these modes have to become receptive to our inner man and they include: Inward voice, Small still voice, Audible voice, Inner witness, knowing, dream, open vision, dream, prophecy, trance, dreams, Nature, through our gifts, people, desires, conscience, and circumstances. 

Inward witness:  this is the inner being of our spirit man which is expected to be receptive to the voice of God. It is with it we are able to specifically distinguish between good and evil without any assumption and to accurately distinguish between two things that seem similarly good in alignment with God’s word. It is the epicenter of our spirit that bears testimony of Jesus in other people around us, with your inward man or inward witness you are able to put check to every confusing and conflicting thing that seems to have a resemblance to that of Jesus but not really of his’s. It acts in the same manner as a discerning spirit, it is a litmus test to check all other voices around us and if this part of us is not rigorously trained and built up over time we may find it difficult to hear from God. 
Small still voice: we occasionally hear God speak to us in a gentle small voice which could look somehow dramatic because it as if we are hearing a real voice in a real sense in form of mild whispering, I have experienced this one or two time in my life and it as if God was directly beside me whispering to my heart. We occasionally hear this voice in our journey in life especially trying moments, during wilderness experience, when the devil seems roaring amidst storms of life, if keep calm in quietness we will hear his small still voice just like Elijah in the book of 1st King 18:12 “and after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire and after the fire a still small voice”.
Audible Voice: God speaks in a clear audible voice similar to hearing of a real human voice. They are so many of such audible voices recorded in the bible both in the old and new testament. Samuel heard God; “God spoke to Moses in an audible voice; The LORD would speak to Moses' face to face, as one speaks to a friend “(Exodus 33:11). God (Jesus) spoke to Paul inaudible voice on his way to Damascus, he spoke in an audible manner to Ananias and many others.
Dream: many hear God through dreams just as it is recorded in so many instances in the bible, the likes of Joseph, Daniel, Abimelech, Solomon, Jacob, Laban, and the three wise men and many more. However whatever we assumed we hear from God in a dream or any other modes of hearing God should be subjected to the litmus test of God’s Spirit in us in order not to be manipulated by the forces of darkness or the state of our mind. What we experience in dreams could be a reflection of the state of our mind and it is very possible for the devil to manipulate us in this realm as well.

Open vision: this is the ability of the spirit of God to be able to gain access to our subconscious mind in the realm of the spirit giving us an open clear revelation of what is to happen around us. This vision usually is in the form of film revealing things to come to us. They are so many Prophets and ministers of God in the bible who has a similar experience as this, for example, Ezekiel, Jeremiah, Isaiah, Daniel, Paul, John, etc. And the Lord said to Paul one night in a vision, “Do not be afraid but go on speaking and do not be silent... (Acts 18:9) 

Trance: This is a deep penetration of the spirit of God into our sub- subconscious mind, the experience in this realm in this realm is similar to that of open vision but the force attached to this could be greater. Trance is characterized by an absence of response to environmental stimuli around us while he connects us to the revelation/visions in the realm of the spirit.
“But Peter began speaking and proceeded to explain to them in orderly sequence, saying, “I was in the city of Joppa praying; and in a trance, I saw a vision, an object coming down like a great sheet lowered by four corners from the sky; and it came right down to me, and when I had fixed my gaze on it and was observing it I saw the four-footed animals of the earth and the wild beasts and the crawling creatures and the birds of the air” ( Acts 11:4-9). Trance may not be limited to dramatic experience shaking and closing of one’s eyes as exhibited by many. It is possible your eyes are open when you while in trance.

Conscience: every man has a conscience be it believers or non-believer. Conscience is two compound words matched together ‘’con” and science. It is that of part human instinct that enables us to identify what is good and what is evil, it is like a small still voice of the human mind giving judgment to every one of our actions. God at times channeled the purposed of his will through human conscience, however, if over time we ignored the voice of our conscience it becomes dead to the voice of God and we keep sinning until devil grab hold of us. The more you ignore your conscience the harder your heart becomes seared. God still speaks but the hardened heart can’t hear Him. Such will not be our portion in Jesus' name. “Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron”…(1Timothy 4:1-2).
Natures: Psalms 19: 1 says “The heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament sheweth his handiwork”. God oftentimes speaks through our surrounding environment to reveal the purpose of his will in us. The more we gaze our mind and have a deep reflection of our immediate environment and the awesomeness of God’s creation the more we value the efficacy of fellowshipping and being in one accord with him. The stars, the moon, the sun, sea, ocean, sand of the sea, animals, and human race are testimonies of God's works. 
Prophecy and Prophets: God speaks to us through prophecy because the bible says “prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit” ( 2nd Peter 1:21”. Prophets through prophecy are the mouthpiece of God conveying God’s mind to us and making us fit into God’s perfect plan. We must, however, note that the prophetic ministration of the Old Testament is quite different from the New Testament. In the Old Testament, only prophets and few personalities have access to the voice of God but in this present dispensation, we have equal access to hearing God’s voice through prophecy too. Whatever we get from prophets of God in reals sense should be a kind of confirmation to what God has revealed to us, but if we are not really in tune with God’s voice how shall we confirm every word of prophecy from these holy men?
Desires: our desire operates in the realms of our feelings and emotions God at times speaks through desires because he too has feelings and emotions as we are. It is possible you have a desire for something good, for example, particular clothes or shoes or something, this could be God speaking to you in that regard. All you need to do is to balance such desires with the word of God and check through the spirit of God in you.

SHALOM!!!