HEARING GOD’S VOICE IN A NOISY WORLD

SERMON: HEARING GOD’S VOICE IN A NOISY WORLD Series: Growing in Faith (Ep. 10)

1. EMOTIONAL HOOK Have you ever struggled to hear God?

Not just in a crisis—but in the day-to-day? When life feels busy, voices feel loud, and the noise of the world drowns out your soul?

We all want clarity. Direction. Reassurance. We say, “God, just tell me what to do.” But then life gets louder. Our phones never stop buzzing. Our calendars never slow down. And we wonder why God feels silent.

But here’s the truth: God is still speaking.He hasn’t gone quiet. He hasn’t checked out. He’s not withholding His voice.

We’ve just forgotten how to listen.

2. TRANSITION TO ME I used to think hearing God was reserved for spiritual giants or people more disciplined than me. But I’ve come to realize—God speaks to those who make space to hear.

3. ME There was a time in my life when the noise wasn’t coming from the outside world—it was coming from people I loved. I found myself in a season where people I had once called friends began to turn on me. They whispered behind my back. They spread things that weren’t true. Gossip replaced grace, and the voices that once brought comfort now brought confusion.

It shattered me. I wasn’t just navigating disappointment—I was swimming in betrayal. The very people I thought I could trust became the source of the loudest lies. And I tried to block it out. I tried to ignore it. But the noise was everywhere. It felt inescapable. It wasn’t just rumors—it was rejection. And rejection cuts deep.

I remember lying awake at night, heart racing, wondering what people were saying. Wondering if anyone would believe me. Wondering if God even saw it all happening. I was exhausted—not just physically, but spiritually. I was crying out for clarity, but all I felt was silence.

But in that swirl of noise, the hardest part was trying to hear God’s voice through the heartbreak.

And then—somewhere in the stillness—I didn’t hear a roar. I didn’t get answers. But I heard something deeper. A whisper: “I’m still here. You’re still mine.”

It wasn’t what I expected, but it was exactly what I needed.

That whisper reminded me that God’s voice isn’t always loud, but it’s always near. That even when the world is shouting lies, His truth still whispers love. That His voice doesn’t need to compete—because it carries weight. His whisper calmed the storm in me, even when the storm around me raged on.

4. WE/SOCIETY/CULTURE We live in a world obsessed with noise. Notifications. Headlines. Podcasts. Playlists. Opinions. Everyone’s talking. Few are listening.

We scroll endlessly, swipe mindlessly, and consume content at a pace our souls were never meant to handle. We’ve been discipled more by algorithms than by the voice of God. Our attention spans are shrinking while our anxiety rises. And in the chaos, we lose the art of listening.

We’re told to “speak your truth,” “follow your feelings,” and “manifest your future.” But none of those things quiet the ache in our souls. They just turn up the volume on our own voice and drown out the only voice that brings peace.

Even in church culture, we often prioritize production over presence. We seek inspiration more than intimacy. We preach loud, but live hurried. And though we may sing songs about hearing God's voice, our lives rarely create the space for it.

We hustle for clarity, but we don’t sit still long enough to hear it. We want answers, but we rarely ask the right questions. We want direction, but avoid the discipline of listening.

We live in a culture where everyone has a microphone, but few have a message from God. We have instant access to information, but very little intimacy with the voice that matters most.

We start mistaking God's silence for His absence. We confuse noise with importance. We begin to think that if it’s not loud, it’s not real.

But the voice of God doesn’t compete. It waits. It whispers.

Elijah found this out in 1 Kings 19. He didn’t hear God in the wind. Or the earthquake. Or the fire. He heard Him in the whisper.

And the whisper of God will always cut through the noise—if we’ll slow down enough to hear it.

5. GOD: BIBLE VERSES AND QUOTES Let’s see what Scripture says about hearing God’s voice:

John 10:27 – “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” This is personal. Jesus doesn’t say “my followers listen to a voice”—He says my sheep listen to my voice. This is a relationship, not religion. A God who speaks directly to His children and desires to be known.

Isaiah 30:21 – “Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it.’” God’s guidance doesn’t come in advance like a map—it comes in real time like a guide. He speaks in the turn, not just before the journey. The closer we walk with Him, the clearer His direction becomes.

Psalm 46:10 – “Be still, and know that I am God.” Stillness is not just about quieting our surroundings—it’s about centering our soul. In Hebrew, “be still” can also mean “let go.” Let go of striving. Let go of fear. In the stillness, we know. We don’t just hear about God—we encounter Him.

1 Kings 19:12 – “And after the fire came a gentle whisper.” God wasn’t in the wind, or the earthquake, or the fire. He came in the whisper. Why? Because whispers are only heard in closeness. God wants intimacy, not theatrics. He wants you near.

Hebrews 1:1-2 – “In the past God spoke… through the prophets, but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son.” Jesus is the clearest voice of God we’ll ever hear. He is not only the Word made flesh, but the voice of the Father’s heart. If you want to know what God sounds like—look at the life and words of Jesus.

Dallas Willard once wrote, “Hearing God is not a luxury for the spiritual elite. It’s a necessity for anyone who wants to grow in faith.” And A.W. Tozer said, “The one who does not expect God to speak will discount every time He does.”

6. YOU/PRACTICAL STEPS So how do we tune into the voice of God?

Silence the noise.

Start with 5 minutes a day of pure stillness. No music. No phone. Just you and God. Let the chaos settle.

Read Scripture slowly.

Don’t rush. Don’t check a box. Let the Word read you. Ask, “God, what are You saying to me right now?

Ask and expect.

James 1:5 says if we ask for wisdom, God gives generously. Pray for ears to hear and believe He’ll respond.

Write down what you hear.

Keep a journal. Track the whispers. Over time, you’ll start to recognize patterns in how He speaks.

Test it with His Word.

God’s voice will never contradict His Word. If it’s loving, peace-filled, convicting (not condemning), and rooted in truth—it’s likely Him.

Analogy: Think of God’s voice like a radio station—it’s always broadcasting. But if we don’t tune in, we miss the music. Stillness is the frequency. Surrender is the dial.

7. CLOSING VISION, WE We are not a people meant to wander in confusion. We are a people invited into communion.

God still speaks. Not just to prophets. Not just to pastors. But to you. In your kitchen. In your car. In the in-between moments.

What if we stopped waiting for the lightning bolt and started listening for the whisper? What if we trusted that God is not just speaking—but wants to speak to us?

Imagine the clarity that would rise in your life if His voice was your compass. Imagine the peace that would grow if His whisper drowned out the noise.

You would walk differently. Speak differently. Love differently. You wouldn’t react out of pressure, but respond from presence.

He’s not a God of confusion—He’s a God of clarity. He’s not a God who hides—He’s a Father who calls.

The question is: Will we make space? Will we lean in?

So let’s be a people who don’t settle for secondhand revelation. Let’s press in until we know His tone. Let’s pause until we sense His presence. Let’s follow His voice even when it’s not popular, convenient, or loud.

Because when we learn to hear His whisper, it changes how we live in the storm. It changes how we lead in the tension. It changes how we love when it’s costly.

When God’s voice becomes the loudest voice in your life, anxiety loses its grip. Fear bows. Chaos quiets. And clarity begins.

We don’t need more noise—we need more nearness. We don’t need to shout louder—we need to listen deeper.

Because the world may be loud. But our God still whispers. And when we make space to hear Him—everything changes.