Start with praise and worship

Whatever you are praying for, one of the best ways to start is with praise and worship. They will keep your heart right before God and make a way for you to hear His voice and for change to take place. God's word for you today: When you need to hear God's voice, praise and worship Him.

Do what youvare good at

If we do what we are good at doing, we will sense God's anointing (presence and power) on our efforts. We will know we are operating in our gifts and that doing so honors God and ministers life to others. God speaks to us through this anointing, giving us peace and joy to know we are fulfilling His plan for our lives. God's word for you today: Do what you're good at - it's God's gift to you.

Prayer in the spirit

I find that when I pray Spirit-led prayers, they are usually simpler and shorter than mine would be. They are direct, straightforward, and to the point. I feel satisfied that the task is complete when I pray God's way instead of my own way. When we pray our own way, we often focus on praying for carnal things and circumstances, but if we are led by God we will find ourselves praying for eternal things like the purity of our thoughts and motives and a deeper relationship with God. Ask God to teach you how to pray His prayers instead of your own and you will enjoy prayer much more.

Pray and Give Thanks

Giving thanks is so important to being able to hear God's voice because, like praise and worship, it is something God responds to. It's something God loves, something that warms His heart. Anytime we give God pleasure like that, our intimacy with Him increases - and that makes for a better relationship with Him. If we are not thankful for what we have, why should He give us something else to murmur about? On the other hand, when God sees that we genuinely appreciate and are thankful for the big and little things, He is inclined to bless us even more. According to Philippians 4:6, everything we ask God for should be preceded and accompanied by thanksgiving. No matter what we pray for, thanksgiving should always go with it. A good habit to develop is starting all of our prayers with thanksgiving. An example of this would be: "Thank You for all You have done in my life. You are awesome and I really love and appreciate You." I encourage you to examine your life, to pay attention to your thoughts and your words, and see how much thanksgiving you express. If you want a challenge, just try to get through an entire day without uttering one word of complaint. Develop an attitude of thanksgiving in every situation. In fact, just become outrageously thankful - and watch as your intimacy with God increases and as He pours out greater blessings than ever before. God's word for you today: Speak words of thanksgiving, not words of complaint. From the book Hearing from God Each Morning by Joyce Meyer. Copyright 2010 by Joyce Meyer. Published by FaithWords. All rights reserved.

Difficulties mean growth

For a period of time in my life, I rebuked whatever I didn't want because I thought it must be from the devil. I say that I rebuked until my "rebuker" was just totally worn out. But then I discovered that a lot of what I was trying to rebuke was from God. Many of the things I did not like or want were things God had allowed for my growth and development. The writer of Hebrews said that we must submit to the discipline of God. He chastises us only because He loves us. Don't try to resist what God intends to use for your good. Ask the Lord to do a deep and thorough work in you so you can be all He wants you to be, do all He wants you to do, and have all He wants you to have. During my years of resisting anything that was painful or difficult, the simple truth is that I did not grow spiritually. I kept going around and around the same old mountains (problems). Finally, I realized that I was trying to avoid pain, but I had pain anyway. The pain of staying the way we are is much worse than the pain of changing. Our personality is our soul (mind, will, and emotions), but often it has been wounded by our experiences in the world. God promises to restore our souls if we will cooperate with the work of the Holy Spirit in us. I had a broken soul, one that had no peace or joy, but God has made me whole and He wants to do the same for you. God's word for you today: Open your soul to God and ask Him to heal every wound and bruise.

he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.
Psalm 23:3 NIV
https://psalm.bible/psalm-23-3

Sensitive heart

Being in His presence regularly softened my heart and made me much more sensitive to His voice. Without a heart sensitive to the touch of God, we will not recognize many of the times He is speaking to us. He speaks gently, in a still, small voice, or with gentle conviction about a matter. A hard-hearted person is also in danger of hurting other people and not even being aware that they are doing so, and this grieves the heart of God. Those who are hard-hearted and busy "doing their own thing" will not be sensitive to God's will or voice. God wants to soften our hearts with His Word, because a hardened heart cannot hear His voice or receive the other many blessings He longs to give.

I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh.
Ezekiel 11:19 NIV
https://bible.com/bible/111/ezk.11.19.NIV

At home with God

If we want to be a comfortable "home" for the Spirit of the Lord, we must give up things that cause us to forget about His presence or are offensive to Him. We must stop grumbling, allowing strife and unrest inside us, or harboring unforgiveness. Instead, we need to make sure our inner lives are engaged in things that please and honor God's presence. Our mouths should be full of praise and thanksgiving. We should wake up every day and say in our hearts, "Good morning, Lord. I want You to feel at home and be comfortable in me today."