A Short Guide to Listening Prayer

Central to the practice of being a Christian is the discipline of listening to God in prayer. Jesus often withdrew to listen to the Father, and his followers are to do the same. What follows is a simple (and not at all complete) guide to this practice.1. Set a Time to Listen.Listening to God takes intention; it's not just going to happen. Set a time to listen, and put it in your calendar. We do this when we are meeting a friend at Starbucks; can we not do this also with God?2. Find a Place to ListenThis place should be quiet and free from distraction.3. Pay Attention to PostureOur spirits are connected to our bodies, so what our bodies are doing when we are trying to listen matters. I recommend two simple postures: kneeling and sitting. The first indicates a posture of humility and worship. When sitting, sit upright, with your arms extended and your hands open, palms up. This posture indicates openness to what God has to say. This openness of body will trickle into your soul.4. Invite God to SpeakGod doesn't really need an invitation, but inviting God to speak further opens our spirit to the Spirit of God. I recommend a simple repeated prayer: "Holy Spirit, speak."5. Hold on to ScriptureThe words of the Bible must be central to the practice of listening prayer. A short phrase of Scripture can be a handhold as you try to center your being on the voice of God. As we enter into quiet, often what happens is we hear the cacophony of our lives: worries, dreams, to-do lists, etc.. All of this jumps into the silence like a crazy two year old. Use a short phrase of Scripture to wade into, and through, this cacophony. For example, let's say you are reading Psalm 13, and your heart latches onto the last line: "I will sing to the Lord, because he has dealt bountifully with me." Say repeatedly to God, either in silence or out loud, "God, you have dealt bountifully with me." As random thoughts swirl in your head, this phrase becomes your handhold to center in on the Spirit of God.6. ListenGod may speak, and God may not. We cannot conjure God with our practice; we cannot make God speak. All of the above is a way to create space in our lives to hear the voice of God. We are listening for a quiet, strong voice.7. RepeatListening to God is a life-long practice. It is difficult, and foreign, and strange. It is also worth it. Stay in the struggle of listening for God. This is something we can get better at, and as we do, we become better at boldly following Jesus. Want to Read More about this? I recommend two books by Richard Foster: Celebration of DisciplinePrayer