Meditation

Jesus is especially with you during your most difficult times. He is at your side in the middle of the situation with you. You are a winner because Jesus desires to lead each of us from one victory to the next. But to be a winner you have to know what He wants you to do to get there! Yes, God gave Israel precise instructions to His people on whether or not they should go into battle, places or where to go and what strategies to adopt. During this Advent season give Jesus the greatest gift of all - your difficulties, your problems, your worries, etc. Show Him that you trust Him completely. He will turn them all into blessings for the world.

“Then David inquired of the Lord once again. And the Lord answered him and said, ‘Arise, go down to Keilah. For I will deliver the Philistines into your hand.” 1Samuel 23:4.

Why does God speak to us? He speaks to us because He enjoys being in a relationship with us; He has a plan of love for each of us that He would like to see fulfilled and most of all He doesn't want to do anything without us!  He wants to tell us important things about our destiny. We each have a magnificent destiny which is meeting Jesus Christ! For this, we sometimes need to put our human plans aside and accept to follow the GPS of the Holy Spirit!

“Then He said, ‘The God of our fathers has chosen you that you should know His will, and see the Just One, and hear the voice of His mouth.” Acts 22:14. 

Is it truly possible to hear the voice of God? Of course we can and it is even advised to! Most of us don't hear out loud God speaking to us directly and we don't see signs like the Three Kings did when they saw the Star of David. However, we have the Holy Spirit, also known as the “councillor”. If the Three Kings travelled across countries by simply following a shining star because they were convinced that they were going to find the Messiah, the Holy Spirit will give each of us the indications necessary to follow Jesus and see the glory of God manifested in our lives.

“behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.” Matthew 2: 1-2.

What do you have to do? The key is prayer in order to listen to the Holy Spirit. When you ask God a question in prayer, He answers in several ways. It can be a conviction, an event, something that someone says, a biblical phrase, a sensation, a dream, an image or a word that you have received. You need to be attentive and little by little you will learn how to recognize when God is speaking to you personally. Since we have been all created unique, the Lord speaks to each of us based on our personality and our way of functioning.

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations.” Jeremiah 1: 5.

Practical Advice

To begin, sit in a calm place in prayer. Tell God that you are listening and ask the Holy Spirit to enlighten you. Write down spontaneously whatever comes to you even if you don't understand the meaning. You can ask the Holy Spirit an explication or an interpretation. Share with Jesus all of your questions, try and enter into a dialogue with Him as you would your best friend. The good news is that this is something that you can do in your everyday life for little as well as important decisions.

Here are some concrete examples. We can ask the Holy Spirit to enlighten us on what to say to someone, on what to write in our studies, our work, a publication for Hozana, and even to help us find our way back to God!

Let us pray

Father, I truly desire to know your will and accomplish it in each action and decision of my life. I know that I don't have the strength to walk alone towards You but I have chosen the path that leads to You, I have chosen Jesus. Holy Spirit, fill me, be my councillor, the one who guides me to the light of Jesus.

In the name of Jesus, I get break all of the obstacles that prevent me from advancing towards God and from hearing His voice, His will for me in my life. I proclaim the victory of Jesus Christ in my life. In the name of Jesus, no defeat can stop me from being victorious in Christ!

Rise to the challenge!

In prayer, present a situation to the Lord where you must make a choice and where you need to be enlightened and use discernment.

Something extra!

Learn how to recognize the voice of God with Rick Warren

https://youtu.be/-827QmRDjUA

OR

Saint John Paul II National Shrine ( Saint Faustina) "Training our ears to hear the voice of God"
https://youtu.be/uGzWcSWSWTs