Learning to recognise the voice of God is one of the most astounding yet confusing things a human being can learn to do Christin Thieme: And you write that it can all be condensed into four words, listen and follow Jesus. So, finally, question for you, what happens when we learn to live in this way? Desiring a deeper faith, we need God to say something, anything, to turn the monologue we call prayer into a genuine conversation. I talk in the book about the ABC as a principle of how you know if it’s God or not. Is it Affirming? Is it Biblical? And is it Christlike? If it’s those three things, then it is probably God. And Lectio is much more that approach. It’s less about exegesis and more what is God whispering to me through this? And there are four steps to doing it that I outline in the book. The Latin phrase is Lectio Meditatio. That’s just meditate on what you’ve read.

This is one of the reasons I am grateful for One Voice in Prayer. A bit like Google Translate, it makes praying for global issues a little less intimidating by supplying me with conversation-starters to talk with God about things that really matter. And so that’s where we started, Christin, my sheep, stupid sheep, like you and me. “My sheep listen to my voice. I know them and they follow me.” Say yes to Jesus. Listen to Jesus and say yes to Jesus, and everything else will come into alignment. Because he says, “Seek first my kingdom and my righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well (Matthew 6:33) .” So yeah, just listen and obey. There’s no other way. Pete Greig: Nothing could possibly matter more than learning to discern the voice of God, but few things in life are more susceptible to delusion and deception. That’s why we need to be rooted in God’s Word, living each day in conversation with the Lord Jesus Christ who is the Living Word of God.

About this book

In largely focusing on Lectio as a means of "Hearing God" in scripture there was a tendency to dismiss other means of reading the Bible devotionally, particularly reading larger sections that give us a greater sense of the narrative, and which would have been, in the absence of personal Bibles and chapter and verse, to original way in which scripture would literally have been "heard" rather than the atomised, bite-sized approach that has been the norm of too many evangelical Bible notes, and into which Lectio can easily descend. When I graduated from what you guys would call seminary with a degree in theology, and another one in sociology, what I discovered was I suddenly knew a lot about the Bible, but I’d lost my ability to really hear God personally in it. Because I was just always analyzing what does this mean? What’s the Greek here, and how does it all fit together? But you are absolutely right. It’s also blooming hard. It’s really difficult. All of us have been hurt. Probably, maybe times you’ve cried out to God and you needed him to speak and give you an answer. And he doesn’t seem to have answered. Or maybe a preacher abused God’s Word to try and manipulate a political election or force you to do something wrong. Or maybe, well, I had a woman come up to me after church one day. She looked me in the eyes and said, “God has commanded me to marry you.” And do you know what? The real aim of this book isn’t just to teach people how to hear God in religious contexts, like prayer and Bible study, important as those things are. What happens when we start to hear God in all of creation? Like when we switch on the normal radio? When we go for a walk? When we talk to a non-Christian who doesn’t believe God exists, and yet we start to hear God in what they’re saying? That’s when one day the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. That’s what it says in Habakkuk (2:14). Pete Greig: Yeah. And yet it’s one of the things I love most about God, and I think I probably had to unlearn and relearn most. Because you’re right, our assumption is if God speaks to me, it’s going to be a booming voice. It’s going to be unmistakable, angels, dramatic. And yet, mostly he speaks to us quietly and silently. I tell in the book, lots of examples of times that people just miss Jesus completely. They just miss him. There’s the couple on the road to Emmaus.

Don't we all want to hear from God? How much easier our lives would be if we could hear his voice and follow his direction. I love Pete's writing because it is easy to understand. The simple way he handles difficult subjects in How to Hear God makes this book compelling. If you really want to grow on this journey of hearing God, here is the book that will help you grow immensely.' senior pastor of Jesus House London Agu Irukwu

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We have spent over twenty years teaching young people how to hear the voice of God. We wish we would have had this book the whole time—it would have made our jobs much easier! This is the most inspiring, empowering, and exhaustive book we have read on hearing God's voice. This book doesn't just fill your head with information but also will cause your heart to burn with inspiration. You could give this book to a brand-new believer, and they would be immediately empowered to hear God's voice. Or you could give it to a believer who has walked with God for many years, and they would be inspired and challenged to hear him in an even deeper way. The body of Christ has needed this book for very long time.' recording artists Jonathan and Melissa Helser Pete Greig: Normal people. Busy, normal, confused people who sometimes wonder if God even exists. Yes. I am learning to listen for the ‘still, small voice’ of God in the quietness. (1 Kings 19:12) For instance, as I sat in silence recently feeling overwhelmed by news of conflict, I was reminded of Jeremiah 31:15: ‘Rachel is weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because they are no more.’ The despair I was feeling found a focus in that verse. 3. God’s Word for in the wider culture Nothing could possibly matter more than learning to discern the authentic voice of God, but few things in life are more susceptible to delusion, deception and downright abuse. When life falls apart and we need God's comfort; in moments of cultural turmoil when we need God's clarity; facing formidable decisions when we need God's guidance; desiring a deeper faith when we need God to say something, anything, to turn the monologue we call prayer into a genuine conversation. Pete Greig: And yet that’s what we love about Jesus. Right? He was ordinary and yet extraordinary. He was humble. He didn’t force himself on people. So if we’re going to learn to hear him, we need to begin to think that his voice might sound a lot like our thoughts. It might sound like a Bible verse. It might be one of those pictures that comes into your head and you think, “Is that just me, or could it be God?”

Greig has once again produced an engaging book on an important element of Christian discipleship, drawing on sources from across the denominational/theological/historical spectrum. The section on Lectio was particularly helpful, indeed I started to read this because of the parallel "Lectio Course" which we studied as a church group throughout Lent. We also hear his voice through the discipline of prayer, which is of course a two-way communication. Greig introduces the reader to the ancient approach known as lectio divina; harnessing the power of imagination and meditation. The four main steps of lectio divina, the author made highly popular in ‘ How to Pray’, by using the simple acronym, P.R.A.Y: Pause, Read ( lectio), Reflect (meditation), Ask ( oratio) and Yield (contemplation). Pete Greig: The apostle Paul says that “the one who prophesies speaks to people for their strengthening, encouraging and comfort” ( 1 Cor. 14:3). The prophetic gift enables us to strengthen, encourage, and comfort other people with God’s Word which is “living and active“ ( Hebrews 4:12). The British education system had, it turned out, prepared me with commendable zeal and focus over three long years for quite extensive discussions about stationery and affordable dairy products, but had somehow left me woefully deficient in the realms of alternative medicine, tectonic plates and, well, actually almost anything else.So he’s still pointing to the authority of Scripture, even though the greatest miracle ever has just taken place in his resurrection. The book comes in two parts: Part 1; vox eterna; Hearing God through God’s Word and Part 2: vox interna; Hearing God through God’s whisper. Part 1: God’s Word A lot of people say God has told them something, but then you hear what it is, and it sounds more like a message from the devil. Other folks who don't even believe in God seem to have a word of truth for today. Well, here is a book by someone you can trust. Pete Greig has been a friend for years, and he is one of the wisest people I know when it comes to prayer. This book draws from the well of wisdom that has nourished the faithful for centuries. It is filled with voices of saints who have been not only people of prayer but people who get up off their knees and put feet on those prayers. This incredible book is a call to prayer and a call to action . . . which is exactly what our world needs right now.' Shane Claiborne So there’s the Bible. And then they say, “Our hearts burned within us as he spoke to us on the road.” So there’s those times where you just sense God speaking. Maybe it’s a still small voice. And so there’s a whole bunch of ways God clearly speaks in this story. Pete Greig: And this fall, I’m going to be filming a video series, a free video series, discussion starters based around the book, so that’ll be available. If you like the book, that’ll be an opportunity to roll that out with all your friends.

Some people, and I’ve been doing interviews like this, if they’re really, really into the Bible, they sometimes get really nervous that I talk about God speaking in prophecy. But the Bible says God speaks in prophecy. And then others are really into all the prophetic stuff, and they’re like a bit disappointed I’m saying, “No, the main way God speaks is through the Bible.” And both are true. Pete Greig is founder of the 24-7 Prayer movement. In 2019, he published How to Pray, on the whys and hows of our words to God ( Feature, 12 April 2019). His new book examines the other side of the conversation: how we hear God speaking to us.Greig’s main readership is likely to be young adults in the Charismatic Evangelical wing of the Church. This book will do a solid job helping them listen for the voice of God in everyday life, by way of a broad range of spiritual traditions, while remaining alert to the loopier and more manipulative claims of some would-be channellers of the Almighty. More about what story in Scripture Pete says is a master class for anyone seeking to learn to hear God’s voice. In his signature refreshing style, Pete offers just these things to anyone seeking to turn what can sometimes feel like a monologue into a genuine conversation with God. He explores the story of Christ’s playful, poignant conversation with the disciples on the road to Emmaus and, as ever, draws deeply from the insights of a wide range of Christian traditions. So it’s a book with a broad audience – he unites the evangelical emphasis on hearing God in the Bible, the charismatic commitment to hearing God in the prophetic, and the ancient art of lectio divina (among other practices and traditions). There’s something about Pete’s thorough grasp of the life of the Church down through history and across the globe that allows this book to transcend what we might deem to be the Christian tribalism of our day.