Hearing God's Voice

Something that has been constantly weighing heavy on my mind as I continue to discern my next steps is... what does it mean to hear His voice? 

You hear the phrase being thrown around constantly within the church. "God told me..." "I heard Him say..." And it's not that I doubt their real experiences and convictions, but I really have been quite at a loss to understanding what they really mean when they say they heard from God.

Is it an audible voice? Is it something that pops out at you while reading scripture? Is it a sermon that you hear that particularly moves your heart?

Because I'll be honest with you... for the many years that have gone by, the way that I have made decisions really have come down to trusting a gut feeling. I pride myself in being quite a skilled intuitor... and have thus naturally put my faith in it when I'm at a crossroad. I guess you could say (and I'm sure I've used this reasoning each time) that God can speak to you even through that gut feeling. Maybe that heart tug in one particular direction is actually the work of the Holy Spirit?

I honestly can't be sure. Because it seems that at the end of the day... if you still haven't explicitly "heard" anything, you have to take action in some way. Perhaps... what I'm trying to get at is that listening to God may actually be a lot more of an active experience than a more passive... sit and just wait for a revelation type of experience. For example.. weighing out the pros and cons and practically deciding on something based on the fact that there arent any huge red flags waving before you. God is a practical God too, ain't he?

But on the other hand I question whether a decision should be made at all if God doesnt speak clearly. Perhaps his silence is a sign that you simply need to wait until he calls you to another place of obedience... a better option?

Sigh. As you can clearly tell...I am confused. So I have been scouring scripture and the net (bc that feels loke the next best resource to the bible.. lol sketch) for answers.

I started in 1 Kings 19:11-13... where God appears to Elijah in a "still small voice"... he doesn't always necessarily come in a roaring windstorm, nor in an earthquake, or fire. He speaks in gentle whispers.

Question is... what is that gentle whisper?!

More explorations on this next time!