Learning to Listen in Moments of Selah

Friend, there is a difference between hearing and listening. Hearing is a passive sound that reaches the ear, but not the heart. Listening is intentional and requires stillness, attention, and surrender.

Most of us want to hear God, but few of us slow down long enough to listen. Samuel learned this as a boy. In the book of 1 Samuel Chapter 3, In the quiet hours of the night, before the noise of the world could crowd in, Samuel heard his name called. At first, he assumed it was Eli. Only after being guided did he recognize the sound of God’s voice. God was speaking the whole time. Samuel simply had to learn how to listen. And so do we.

Listening to God isn’t complicated, but it does require a posture of the heart:

• A willingness to be still

• A readiness to receive

• A humility that says, “Lord, teach me Your way”

• A heart tuned to His Word

Most of us don’t struggle because God is silent. We struggle because our lives are loud. Our thoughts roar. Our schedules overflow. Our fears shout. Our phones buzz. Our emotions scream for attention.

When I was raising four children, there seldom was a moment of quiet to be found until way into the early morning hours when the house was at rest. I remember one evening when I decided to just stay up all night in the presence of God. I was worn out physically and spiritually depleted from giving everyone else all of my energy and wisdom for the day. I was beginning to understand that God desired this time with me as much as I desired it with Him. I read. I prayed. I sang and I listened. It was 6:00 in the morning before I knew it. It was time to get the children up for school and start the day, even though I had started my day several hours earlier.

I can remember seeing everyone off, and having the house to myself. I decided to take a nap and I asked the Lord to please awaken me at 9:00 AM so that I could ready myself for an appointment that day. Right at 9:00 AM, as I had asked, I felt a very light touch on my face that awakened me. I opened my eyes and saw no one. Instantly, I looked at the clock and it was the exact time I had asked the Lord to awaken me. I knew God had sent an angel to touch my cheek to awaken me that morning. I was learning to seek, to ask, to trust and to listen, and I was not disappointed! I heard the Lord quietly greet me with a “Good morning!” Not in my ears but in my spirit man. I HEARD the Lord!

Now, what about God’s voice? Scripture says it is often a whisper (1 Kings 19:12). Whispers require closeness. They ask us to lean in. They invite us to stop, breathe, and turn our attention toward Him.

Listening happens when we quiet the noise long enough to notice the nudge that can come in many ways. It can be a verse that repeats in your mind or a gentle conviction. It can be a peace that steers you or a thought that isn’t yours but feels holy. It can be a closed door….or an opened one. It also can come as a comfort that arrives at just the right moment, and even a touch on a the cheek if needed.

This is the voice of your Shepherd guiding you. As Jesus said in John 10:27, “My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me.”

Learning to listen is not about straining...it’s about surrendering.
It’s not about forcing silence…..but creating sacred pause.
It's not about achieving something….but receiving Someone.

So today, take a Selah moment. Let everything else fall away. Sit with His Word. Sit with His presence.
Sit with your heart open. Then echo Samuel’s simple, powerful prayer:

“Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.”

Then stay still long enough to hear Him speak. Oh! How I love to hear Him speak! Selah.