God, Can You Hear Me?

By Casey Cassady

The beginning of my relationship with God led me through a season of discovering how to communicate with Him. I can recall so many moments of praying and telling God, “Speak to me and teach me something new.” Although reading and becoming familiar with the Bible is a very crucial way to understand more about God and His character, I deeply desired (and still do) to hear His voice. From what I have seen, understanding how to hear God’s voice has been quite a popular and needed topic over the last handful of years. However, there is an equally important part to prayer that we must understand as Christians, and that is God hearing us (the “pray-ers”), and the process of how He responds. If you have ever wondered, “Does God hear me?” or “Why hasn’t God answered my prayer?”, this read is for you!

Proverbs 15:29 NLT says, “The Lord is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayers of the righteous.”

Let me start with saying that the word “righteous” does not mean “perfect”. According to biblestudytools.com, “righteous” comes from the Hebrew term “yashar” which means, “to be pleasing”, “to be agreeable”, “to make right”, and “to be upright”. God desires us to do what is pleasing to Him, to do what is agreeable to His Word, to make right what we have done wrong, and to stand by Him in our walk with Him. These are simply guidelines of how we are called to strive to be righteous. Notice “to make right” implies that it is expected for us to be imperfect, and we must not dismiss the fact that God’s mercy and grace are offered in our moments of imperfection. That is because God loves us.  His love was proven at the cross and is proven each day if we pay close enough attention.

We must rebuke the lies that still linger in some church communities, that believe something along the lines of, “God will only love me, accept me, or hear and answer my prayers if I’m perfect, follow rules, and/or make no mistakes.” Biblically speaking, this is the primary belief system of the Jewish Pharisees – one being Saul who later became Apostle Paul.

When Paul was still a Jewish Pharisee (Saul), he was known to be the most prestigious Jewish “Christian” because of how well he followed the Jewish law. He loved the law, and he hated Christians who were not devoted to the rules that he as a Jewish Christian practiced. Once saved, Saul/Paul ironically, yet divinely became a primary advocate for the Gentiles. Gentiles were non-Jews that were once sinners and who came to Christ through grace through faith. Once finding salvation, the Gentiles were deemed righteous no matter their pasts, no matter their weaknesses, and no matter their mistakes; all because they believed in Jesus dying on a cross, chose to love Him in return, and to do their best to follow Him.

Furthermore, I also believe that sometimes we feel as though God has not answered our prayers because we have not done our part. God’s covenant (one example is the Davidic covenant between God and King David) means that God fulfills His promises when we also “do our part”. This does not mean God does not extend His mercy when and where we lack. And this does not mean His love is based on conditions. It means that when we respond to His voice with faith and in obedience to Him, we can mindfully put ourselves into a place that shows Him we are ready to receive what He has for us.

If you read the miracles of Jesus in the Bible, you will notice that before almost every miracle, Jesus gave a command; a command that took faith. Mary removed the stone that was laid across the entrance of Lazarus’ tomb before God brought Lazarus back to life (John 11:38), Moses raised his hand over the red sea so that God could part it (Exodus 14:21), and several other narratives show the person simply being commanded to just have faith. Sometimes, like Hannah, who was infertile until she became pregnant with Samuel, it takes crying bitterly and pouring our hearts out to the Lord in prayer (1 Samuel 1:10 – 15).

What is God asking you to do so that He can give you your miracle? Do you need to forgive? Do you need to pursue a godly assignment? Do you need faith? Do you need to lay on your bedroom floor in tears and pour your heart out to God? How much do you want and need what you are praying for? Maybe God is wanting to see your eagerness, expectation, and faith!

While we are on the topic, let us talk about faith. Having faith in God means that we believe God is a man of His Word. It means that we not only believe in His existence, but that we believe what He is capable of. This is one of many reasons the Bible is our “biggest weapon”. Knowing what God has done in the past brings light to what He can do for us in the present. Furthermore, this knowledge gives us faith – both in Him and in what He can do in the future.

Another thing to discuss here is how to interpret God’s answer when we feel as though there is no answer. In his sermon “5 Keys To Identifying Your Soulmate” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJutjZ5mm9E), Toure Roberts says that when we do not feel as though we have heard from God, the answer is most likely a “no” or at least a “not at this time”.  

God’s timing for what we pray for will always be the best. He knows us better than we know ourselves, and already knows the amazing things our futures hold when we choose to walk the path He has for us. I truly believe that oftentimes, God’s “yes” is also a feeling of pure peace. We can have peace when we make decisions that might seem irrational to others, when we know that what we choose is from God. He may not always put us in the most “comfortable” places, but we can have peace knowing that we are still pursuing what He has for us.

I remember being in a relationship in the past that was life changing for me. We had our ups and downs, as any relationship does. But despite our issues (that reflected more on life circumstances rather than on who we were as people), I had so much peace with choosing to be with this person. I genuinely felt that the relationship was from God and that God was pleased. Even though we are no longer together and I had to overcome heartbreak, I still believe that the relationship was meant to happen. I learned so much about myself, about my purpose and calling in life, and about what it means to have a Christ-centered relationship. God’s peace during that time allowed me to not justify our issues, but to know that whether it worked out or not, I was making the best decision for myself at that time in my life and that I could be grateful for the opportunity.

If moving forward with a decision has left you feeling uneasy or doubtful, the Holy Spirit is most likely telling you to not move forward. Always be led by the Holy Spirit and the peace that He provides.

Are you happy to know that you are worthy to be heard?  God may answer you differently than the way He has answered you in the past, or differently than how He has answered someone else. This is because He knows exactly what you need, depending on where you are in life. However, do not forget that you are empowered to hear God, and you are empowered to speak to Him with the knowledge that He hears you, He cares, and He responds. God bless you!

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