Learning to Hear God, Jan Johnson

[Laura Taylor]

Learning to Hear God

Jan Johnson

NavPress

http://www.navpress.com/product/9781600066603/Learning-to-Hear-God-Jan-Johnson

 

Wow, I'll tell you right up front that I loved, and continue to love, this book.  It's an ongoing resourse, not a one time read. The cover describes it as  "A Personal Retreat Guide." But the wonderful discovery I've made it that it is a great resource for everyday pursuit of God...you don't need to go away on retreat to glean it's benefits. 

 

Jan's experience as a spiritual director comes right through the pages.  She presses you into the scriptures and then guides you to consider how you are hearing God's voice.  This guide has much guidance in it, but also great practices that help open you to be more intune with God.  There are seven "Conversations" with God -- each support the overall goal of helping us make space for God in our lives. 

 

One of my favorite chapters is Conversation 2: Cultivating Quietness, Psalm 37:1-7, 11; John 10:2-4, 27.  Jan starts the chapter by stressing how important inner quietness is to hearing God: " Once we have an inner quietness, instances of hearing God will most often occur in quiet, attentive prayer and unhurried Bible reading.  We can't make God speak to us, and we should never try to do that, but we can simply remain open to the voice of the One we love."

 

Each conversation then takes a familiar path: 1) Opening to God's Message (she asks great journaling-type questions to focus your attention on the theme; 2) Immersed in God's message (this is where we dive into the scriptures in a lectio divina style reading; 3) Responding to God's Message (person interaction with the passage and hearing God); 4) Resting in the Message (pondering ways to live what we have heard and rest in it).

 

This book is great for beginning prayers and experienced saints.  There is something for everyone here.