Mind the Silence - Listening in Prayer

Vision Reminder: Pour Over Nights are not about hype or performance; they are about cultivating a personal and corporate lifestyle of prayer that goes deeper than the surface.

Check-In from Last Week:

Did you feel spiritually hungry this week?

Was there a moment where prayer felt like survival instead of routine?

What did you identify that needs to be emptied to make room for more of the Spirit?

I. PRAYER IS A CONVERSATION, NOT A MONOLOGUE

“Speak, Lord, for Your servant is listening.”

1 Samuel 3:10 NASB95

10 Then the Lord came and stood and called as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for Your servant is listening.”

Prayer is often treated as a time to speak, but not to listen.

Samuel models a posture of attentive silence — he didn’t talk over God.

Listening prayer is not passive — it’s intentionally tuning in to the voice of God.

The Holy Spirit wants to speak — we must slow down enough to hear.

II. JESUS EXPECTS HIS FOLLOWERS TO HEAR HIS VOICE

“My sheep hear My voice…”

John 10:27 NASB95

27 “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me;

God speaks to those who belong to Him — the question is are we listening?

Many people struggle with prayer because they never pause long enough to receive.

If you see prayer as only you giving, pause and receive.

Listening is an act of trust — believing that God has something worth saying.

III. SILENCE IS SACRED SPACE

In a noisy world, silence becomes a spiritual discipline.

God often speaks not in the earthquake or fire, but in a still, small voice

1 Kings 19:11–12 NASB95

11 So He said, “Go forth and stand on the mountain before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord was passing by! And a great and strong wind was rending the mountains and breaking in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of a gentle blowing.

Silence isn’t empty — it’s filled with the presence of the One who waits to be heard.

Listening prayer trains us to become more responsive throughout our day.

IV. CLOSING CHARGE

Don’t rush past the moment God is trying to speak.

Prayer is not complete if we never stop to listen.

The silence isn’t just a pause — it’s a place of encounter.

PRAYER ACTIVITY – Assignment:

Begin tonight with 5 full minutes of intentional silence.

Ask: “Speak, Lord. I’m listening.”

Journal or quietly reflect on what you sense.

For the rest of the week:

Spend 3–5 minutes each day in silence before speaking in prayer.

Write down impressions, Scriptures, or direction that comes to mind.

Reflect:

Was it hard to sit in silence?

What did you hear — or become aware of — in the quiet?