How Hearing God's Voice Makes me a Better Parent

How hearing God's voice makes me a better parent

I am not parenting alone. None of us are. Sure, we may have spouses and friends and relatives who all contribute to the raising of our kids, and yeah maybe even Google helps out in a pinch a few dozen times throughout the day, but we also have the ability to tap into the Source for all our parenting questions. For me, this ability to hear God in any situation is a lifeline.

How did I start hearing God's voice?

When I was in Junior High, I started getting nudges from the Holy Spirit. At first, I thought this was just what some referred to as a "gut feeling." The feeling did seem to originate In my gut, after all... It felt like a fire in my tummy. I started testing the voice -asking it yes or no (or other basic) questions. The more this "fire" had all the right answers, sometimes to things I had absolutely no way of knowing, the more I realized it wasn't me. It was God.

That led me on a wild journey of learning how God speaks, how He speaks specifically to me, and how to test this "voice" all along the way. As I dived deeper and deeper, the "fire" began to expand Into other ways to hear from God - I would get prophetic dreams, visions, pictures, a sense or a knowing, and even start to hear and see short phrases. Each time, this gave me insight beyond what my mind could muster on its own. Then, I started praying and seeing people healed, or praying and hearing words for other people that turned out to be true, and each step of the journey confirmed my belief that this "voice" inside me belonged to God.

Obviously, this story is a very brief snapshot of a four-decade long journey of learning to hear God's voice. Just know that 40 years of learning has created a strong foundation of hearing God's voice and I stand on that foundation today, as I raise my kids.

How hearing God's voice makes me a better parent

So often I am in way over my head when it comes to parenting. I seek God for literally everything, from how to handle tantrums to dealing with sleep regressions to teething. And He always comes through. Sometimes It comes in the form of inspiration, an idea or a new perspective. Other times He will point me toward a book or resource that shines light on the situation. And still, sometimes He will actually speak - like the time I asked Him to make my kids sleep through the night and He said... "No."

He wasn't being mean, He was trying to teach me. My kids were going through a sleep regression and one or both of them would wake up, sometimes multiple times, at night. I was exhausted, frustrated and frankly, terrified of bed time. "What if they wake up?" "What if I can't get them back down?" "I have so much to do tomorrow!" were just some of the thoughts racing through my mind at night.

So, when I desperately begged God to help and He refused, I was dumbfounded. However, He then started showing me how to teach my kids to be better sleepers. It was a process. And by learning that process, I became a stronger, more empowered mom. Solving the problem for me one or two nights would have only postponed the ongoing worry and doubt I felt. It's like this for me in every aspect of parenting. I will ask God, "Show me what they need right now," or "Help me deal with this situation," and inspiration or help always arrives.

How you can start tapping into the Source for your parenting woes

If you aren't sure if you hear from God, there are several things you can do. First, start by praying and asking questions. When you ask a question, sit with it for a few moments. Do you see a picture? A color? A number? Or do you hear a voice or a phrase? Maybe you receive the answer through a "knowing" deep in your spirit. All of those are ways God speaks - and there are many, many more ways, too. If you feel that you are getting something from God, test It. Ask follow up questions. Ask for confirmation. Ask for a sign, even. The more you get these words or glimpses and the more you test them, the more you will be able to decipher God's voice.

If you ask a question and don't get anything right away, that's OK too. Keep your eyes, ears and mind open throughout the day and see if the answer comes through inspiration, an idea, something a friend says, a billboard on the side of the road, etc. The answer may even come later that night when you are sleeping and dreaming. Be patient and be consistent. I believe God wants to speak to each of us. So, if you ask and keep yourself open, I feel confident you will start to see the ways in which He speaks uniquely to you.