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Habakkuk 2:1-2: "I will stand on my guard post and station myself on the rampart; and I will keep watch to see what He will speak to me...Then the Lord answered me and said, 'Record the vision...'" Ways to be sure what you're hearing is from Him: TEST THE ORIGIN (1 John 4:1) Thoughts from our own minds are progressive, with one thought leading to the next. Thoughts from the Holy Spirit are spontaneous. The Hebrew word for true prophecy is "naba",which literally means to bubble up, whereas false prophecy is "ziyd" meaning to boil up. True words from the Lord will bubble up from our innermost being; we don't need to cook them up ourselves. COMPARE IT TO BIBLICAL PRINCIPLES God will never say something to you personally which is contrary to His universal revelation as expressed in the Scriptures. If the Bible clearly states that something is a sin, no amount of journaling can make it right. Much of what you journal about will not be specifically addressed in the Bible, however, so an understanding of Biblical principles is also needed. COMPARE IT TO THE NAMES AND CARACTER OF GOD REVEALED IN THE BIBLE Anything God says to you will be in harmony with His essential nature. Journaling will help you get to know God personally, but knowing what the Bible says about Him will help you discern what words are from Him. Make sure the tenor of your journaling lines up with the character of God as described in the names of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. TEST THE FRUIT (Matthew 7:15-20) What effect does what you are hearing have on your soul and your spirit? Words from the Lord will quicken your faith and increase your love, peace, and joy. They will stimulate a sense of humility within you as you become more aware of Who God is and who you are. On the other hand, any words you receive which cause you to fear or doubt, which bring you into confusion or anxiety, or which stroke your ego must be immediately rebuked and rejected as lies of the enemy. SHARE IT WITH YOUR SPIRITUAL COUNSELORS (Proverbs 11:14) We are members of a Body! A cord of three strands is not easily broken, and God's intention has always been for us to grow together. Nothing will increase your faith in your ability to hear from God like having it confirmed by two or three other people who have a solid Biblical orientation. ALBERT FINCH MINISTRY

1 Corinthians 2:2 - "For I resolved to know nothing (to be acquainted with nothing, to make a display of the knowledge of nothing, and to be conscious of nothing) among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified." The Holy Spirit within the believer ministers truth by revelation. In other words, it is revealed, not figured out. God does not talk to our brains! He speaks to the spirit of man. Jesus never said that water would flow out of your head, but that, "Out of your innermost being would flow rivers of living water." John 7:36 Observation: NOTHING THAT I SEEK CAN BE AS SATISFYING TO MY SOUL, NO OTHER ANSWER AS BENEFICIAL, AS SEEING CHRIST WITH THE EYES AND UNDERSTANDING OF MY INNER MAN. Ephesians 1:17,18 - "That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him: the eyes of your understanding being enlightened." Ask the Holy Spirit to enlighten the eyes of your understanding. Ephesians 6:17 - "And take the helmet of salvation and the sword that the Spirit wields, which is the Word of God." Affirmations: I HAVE THE EXACT WORD I NEED FOR EVERY SITUATION - A SPECIFIC, QUICKENED WORD FROM THE SCRIPTURES, PLACED IN MY HEART BY THE HOLY SPIRIT. BECAUSE THIS RHEMA FROM GOD IS IN MY HEART, I HAVE REAL SWORD POWER TO USE AGAINST THE ENEMY! Song of Solomon 1:7 - "Tell me, you who my soul loves, where you feed you feed your flock, where you rest at mid-day." YOU BEG YOUR BELOVED (JESUS) TO SHOW YOU WHERE HE FEEDS HIS FLOCKS; YOU WANT TO EAT THE FOOD THAT HE GIVES THOSE THAT ARE UNDER HIS CARE. YOU DESIRE TO BE LOST IN GOD WITH JESUS WHERE YOU WILL WANT TO REST FOREVER. SIN CANNOT DECEIVE YOU THERE, AND HE WILL KEEP YOU FROM WANDERING AWAY. Psalm 23: 1,2,6 - "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: He leadeth me beside the still waters. And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever." ALBERT FINCH MINISTRY

Psalm 5:3 -- "In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation." Hearing from God is living with expectation toward Him because expectation places a demand on the Holy Spirit. We should live with expectation toward God twenty-four hours a day, for He abides within us at all times. God does talk. He is speaking continually. Christians need to develop their receivers (their human spirits) which will enable them to tune in to the voice of the Holy Spirit. Ultimately, the Lord desires that we LIVE A LIFE OF LISTENING. If we insist on God speaking audibly to us, it basically breaks one of His fundamental laws -- It is impossible to please God without faith (Hebrews 11:6). It takes no faith to hear or obey an audible voice. But it does take faith to pay attention to the still small inner voice and witness of the Holy Spirit. It takes dicipline to command all manner of distractions to be still while we wait before God. KEEPING A RECORD In beginning a life of expectation we need to keep a RECORD. Reasons for keeping a record: 1. The act of keeping a record is an act of expection in itself. You are expecting God to TALK TO YOU. Expectation pulls virtue out of God. 2. Impressions that you receive from God have a way of being quickly forgotten. Anything that God speaks to you is not a product of your reasoning mind or thought processes. Whatever way His voice comes to you, it all bypasses the intellectual reasoning process, and is given to your spirit. When the Lord 'drops' knowledge into one's spirit, it usually has nothing to do with the rationalizing process the mind was going through at the time. His voice may have actually interrupted our thought process. FOCUS ON THE HOLY SPIRIT IN OUR FIRST WAKING MOMENTS In the first few waking moments of the day, while the mind is still fresh and coming out of sleep, the Holy Spirit will talk to us. It's as though He catches the brain off guard, and in those first few seconds and minutes (if we pay attention) we will hear the Lord. If we start our day by thinking of all that needs to be done, our minds will attempt to figure things out, and we'll shut God out of our thoughts. If we focus on Him, He will talk to us and direct our day. AFFIRMATIONS: I live with expectation, I pray with expectation, I listen with expectation -- I hear HIS VOICE. I take time to listen to the Lord to hear strategies for myself, my family, and the needs of the Kingdom. ALBERT FINCH MINISTRY