Listening to the Still, Small Spirit: How to Hear and Trust God’s Voice
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Have you ever felt a quiet whisper guiding your heart? A gentle nudge toward a decision, a feeling of peace in the midst of turmoil, or an unexpected thought that brings clarity? This is the still, small voice of the Spirit—the way God speaks to His children.
But in a world full of noise, distraction, and personal desires, how can we be sure it’s the Lord’s voice and not just our own thoughts? How do we tune our hearts to recognize His guidance? Let’s explore this profound and personal experience through scriptural truths, and real-life examples to help us better hear and trust God’s voice.
1. What is the Still, Small Voice?
The Lord rarely speaks in thunderous proclamations or grand visions. Instead, He communicates through gentle impressions, quiet inspiration, and peaceful promptings. This pattern is seen throughout scripture:
📖 1 Kings 19:11-12 – When Elijah sought the Lord, he did not find Him in the mighty wind, the earthquake, or the fire. Instead, “after the fire, a still small voice.”
📖 Doctrine & Covenants 8:2 – “Yea, behold, I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart.”
This still, small voice is often described as a feeling of peace, a thought that seems to come from beyond ourselves, or a gentle reassurance that confirms truth.
2. How to Recognize the Lord’s Voice vs. Your Own Thoughts
One of the most challenging aspects of spiritual growth is learning to discern whether a thought, feeling, or prompting is from the Lord, our own mind, or even outside influences. The adversary seeks to deceive, while our own human desires can sometimes cloud our ability to recognize God’s voice.
How do we know when it’s truly the Lord speaking? What are the signs of divine inspiration versus our own emotions or reasoning? Let’s explore four key ways to recognize the voice of the Lord and learn from scriptures, real-life examples, and LDS leaders on how to strengthen our spiritual discernment.
A. The Spirit Brings Peace, Not Anxiety or Confusion
One of the clearest signs that a prompting is from the Lord is that it brings peace—even in situations where the outcome is uncertain. The Holy Ghost is called the Comforter for a reason. If a thought or impression brings fear, panic, or agitation, it is likely not from God.
📖 Philippians 4:7 – “And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
Example: A Difficult Decision, but a Peaceful Feeling
Emma had been praying for guidance about moving to a new city for work. She loved her hometown, but a new opportunity had arisen that aligned with her long-term goals. She felt nervous but, after praying and fasting, she felt a quiet but undeniable peace about moving forward.
Even though she didn’t have all the answers, that peace reassured her that God was guiding her decision. The Spirit doesn’t always remove uncertainty, but it confirms the right path with peace.
💡 Key Takeaway:
- If an impression brings calmness and confidence in the Lord, it is likely from God.
- If it creates turmoil, panic, or confusion, take time to pray further and seek confirmation.
📖 Doctrine & Covenants 6:23 – “Did I not speak peace to your mind concerning the matter? What greater witness can you have than from God?”
B. The Spirit Aligns with Scripture and Church Teachings
God never contradicts Himself. If a prompting goes against the commandments, scripture, or prophetic counsel, it is not from the Lord.
📖 Doctrine & Covenants 1:38 – “What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken; and I excuse not myself.”
Example: A Conflicting Impression
Ben had been struggling financially and felt tempted to work on Sundays to earn extra money. One night, he felt an impression: “God wants you to provide for your family, so it’s okay to skip church just this once.”
However, as he studied the scriptures, he read Exodus 20:8 – “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.” He realized the Spirit would never contradict a commandment. The thought to work on Sundays wasn’t from God—it was his own rationalization.
💡 Key Takeaway:
- If a prompting aligns with the scriptures and prophetic counsel, it is likely from the Lord.
- If a thought justifies something questionable, take time to pray and study further.
📖 Moroni 7:16-17 – “For behold, the Spirit of Christ is given to every man, that he may know good from evil… whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do evil, and believe not in Christ, is of the devil.”
C. The Spirit Invites Us to Do Good and Grow Spiritually
The Lord’s voice leads us to become better, serve others, and draw closer to Him. Personal thoughts may focus on comfort or convenience, while the Spirit will often stretch us beyond our comfort zone.
📖 Moroni 7:13 – “But behold, that which is of God inviteth and enticeth to do good continually.”
Example: A Prompting to Serve
Mia was rushing home from work when she saw an elderly woman struggling to carry groceries. She felt a sudden thought: “You should help her.”
She almost ignored it, thinking, “I’m in a hurry, someone else will help.” But the impression didn’t leave. Finally, she turned around and helped carry the woman’s bags. The woman smiled warmly and said, “I was praying for someone to help me.”
Mia realized this was the Spirit prompting her to serve.
💡 Key Takeaway:
- If a prompting encourages kindness, service, or spiritual growth, it is from the Lord.
- If a thought leads to selfishness, complacency, or avoiding responsibility, it is likely not from God.
📖 Elder Richard G. Scott: “If you are living the commandments, and striving to do what is right, you can move forward in faith and trust that the Lord will guide your steps.”
D. The Spirit Often Requires Faith Before Confirmation
Sometimes, God gives us only part of the answer and expects us to take a step of faith before full confirmation comes.
📖 Ether 12:6 – “Ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith.”
Example: A Missionary’s Step of Faith
Elder David A. Bednar shared a story of a young missionary who felt prompted to visit a family, even though he didn’t know why. When he arrived, he learned that the mother had been praying for guidance, and his visit was an answer to her prayer.
He realized that sometimes the Lord prompts us before we understand the reason.
💡 Key Takeaway:
- If you feel a strong but unclear prompting, act in faith.
- Often, the confirmation comes after obedience.
📖 President Thomas S. Monson: “When we are on the Lord’s errand, we are entitled to the Lord’s help. That divine help comes through quiet promptings.”
How Can We Improve Our Ability to Hear the Spirit?
The more we actively listen and obey, the stronger our ability to discern the Lord’s voice becomes.
Ways to Strengthen Spiritual Discernment
✅ Daily Scripture Study – The more familiar we are with God’s Word, the easier it is to recognize His voice.
✅ Regular Prayer – Asking for guidance opens the door for revelation.
✅ Faithful Obedience – Following small promptings leads to greater direction.
✅ Journaling Spiritual Impressions – Writing down promptings helps us track patterns in revelation.
✅ Eliminating Distractions – A noisy, distracted life makes it harder to hear God’s whisperings.
📖 Psalm 46:10 – “Be still, and know that I am God.”
Final Thought: Trust the Process
The more we practice listening, discerning, and acting in faith, the more we will come to know the difference between the Lord’s voice and our own thoughts.
💡 Reflection Questions:
- Have I felt a prompting recently but hesitated to act?
- What spiritual habits can I improve to better hear the Lord’s voice?
- Am I allowing fear or doubt to overpower the Spirit’s peace?
✨ Challenge: This week, pay attention to every small prompting you receive. Write them down and act on them in faith. Watch how the Lord guides you!
📖 Doctrine & Covenants 8:2 – “I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost.”
3. Learning to Tune Out Distractions
In today’s busy world, many things compete for our attention—social media, entertainment, work, and worries. If we want to hear the Lord’s voice, we must create space for Him to speak.
Ways to Tune Out the Noise:
📖 Daily Scripture Study – The Lord speaks through His Word. As we immerse ourselves in scripture, we train our hearts to recognize His voice.
📖 Quiet Moments of Reflection – The Spirit often speaks when we are still and listening. Take time away from distractions to hear Him.
📖 Eliminate Sin and Distractions – If we fill our minds with worldly influences, we make it harder to hear God. Keeping commandments and staying close to the Lord clears the way for revelation.
📖 Psalm 46:10 – “Be still, and know that I am God.”
4. Personal Stories of Listening to the Spirit
A. The Whisper that Saved a Life
The Lord’s still, small voice often speaks to us in moments of urgency, prompting us toward actions we may not fully understand at the time. These quiet impressions can be life-changing—or even life-saving—if we choose to listen.
Elder Henry B. Eyring once shared a remarkable story about a father who was awakened in the middle of the night by a strong but quiet feeling to check on his young son. Initially, there was no reason to suspect anything was wrong. The child had been perfectly fine when he went to bed. However, the father had learned to recognize the quiet whisperings of the Spirit, and so, despite feeling a little foolish, he got out of bed and went to his son’s room.
To his horror, he found that the boy had stopped breathing. Because he had obeyed that quiet prompting, he was able to take immediate action, saving his son’s life.
Lessons from This Story
This experience teaches several powerful principles about how the Spirit speaks and why we must learn to recognize it:
1. The Spirit Often Speaks in Subtle, Unexpected Ways
Many people expect dramatic revelation, but more often, the Spirit whispers rather than shouts. This father wasn’t given a loud, undeniable warning—he simply felt an impression that didn’t seem urgent but was persistent enough that he followed it.
📖 1 Kings 19:11-12 – “And after the fire a still small voice.”
💡 Personal Reflection: Have you ever ignored a small impression only to later realize it was the Spirit speaking?
2. Acting on Small Impressions Can Lead to Great Blessings
This father had no idea that his son’s life was in danger. He could have easily dismissed the prompting, thinking:
- “I’m just being paranoid.”
- “There’s no logical reason to check on him.”
- “I’ll just go back to sleep.”
But he chose to act—and because he did, his child was saved.
💡 Key Takeaway: The Spirit may prompt you in ways that don’t always make sense in the moment. Trust God’s voice over logic or doubt.
📖 Doctrine & Covenants 6:23 – “Did I not speak peace to your mind concerning the matter? What greater witness can you have than from God?”
3. The Spirit Prepares Us for Future Guidance
This father likely had a history of listening to the Spirit in small things, which helped him recognize it when it truly mattered.
Just as muscles grow stronger through regular exercise, our spiritual sensitivity grows when we consistently listen to and act on the Spirit’s voice.
💡 Ask Yourself:
- Am I acting on small spiritual impressions daily?
- If God whispered something to me today, would I trust it enough to follow it?
📖 Luke 16:10 – “He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much.”
Real-Life Examples of the Spirit’s Life-Saving Prompts
A Mother’s Prompting to Change Her Route
A woman named Jennifer was driving home one evening when she felt a sudden impression to take a different route than usual. It didn’t make sense—her normal route was faster—but the feeling persisted. She chose to obey.
Later, she learned that there had been a major accident on her usual road just minutes before she would have passed through. Had she ignored the prompting, she could have been in serious danger.
📖 Isaiah 30:21 – “And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it.”
💡 Lesson: The Spirit often protects us from unseen dangers—even when we don’t understand why at the moment.
A Missionary’s Prompting to Knock on One More Door
Elder Jeffrey R. Holland shared a story about two young missionaries who were discouraged after a long day with no success. As they were about to head home, one felt an impression to knock on just one more door.
Though tired, they followed the prompting. A man answered—someone who had been praying that very night for guidance and truth. That man later joined the Church and became a faithful disciple of Christ.
📖 Ether 12:6 – “Ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith.”
💡 Lesson: Sometimes promptings come just before we are ready to give up. Acting in faith, even when we’re tired, allows us to be God’s hands in the lives of others.
How to Strengthen Your Ability to Hear and Trust the Spirit
1️⃣ Make Time for Stillness – If your life is too noisy (social media, distractions, busyness), you may miss God’s whisper.
2️⃣ Act on Small Prompts – Responding to daily nudges helps you recognize the Spirit’s voice more easily.
3️⃣ Pray for Sensitivity – Ask God to help you tune your heart to His whisperings.
4️⃣ Write Down Promptings – Recording impressions builds spiritual confidence and helps you recognize patterns.
5️⃣ Thank God for Revelation – Expressing gratitude helps increase spiritual awareness.
Final Thought: Are We Listening?
God’s voice is always speaking, but are we listening?
The next time you feel a small but persistent nudge, ask yourself:
✅ Is it inviting me to do good?
✅ Does it bring peace, not fear?
✅ Would ignoring it cause regret?
If so, act on it. It could be a life-changing moment—for you or someone else.
✨ Challenge: This week, write down every small prompting you feel and see how God is working in your life.
📖 Doctrine & Covenants 8:2 – “I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost.”
God is always speaking—let’s listen.
5. Trusting the Spirit Even When It’s Hard
Sometimes, we may not like the answer the Lord gives. But trusting Him, even when it’s difficult, leads to greater blessings.
📖 Isaiah 55:8-9 – “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.”
If an answer feels challenging, remember:
✅ God sees the bigger picture.
✅ Peace, not ease, is the confirmation of the Spirit.
✅ Obedience brings greater joy in the long run.
Final Thoughts: Keep Listening, Keep Trusting
The Lord speaks to each of us in different ways, but His voice is always consistent, loving, and guiding. As we learn to recognize His Spirit, we will grow in confidence, faith, and understanding.
💡 Challenge: Take time this week to quiet your mind, pray sincerely, and listen for the Spirit’s whisper. Write down any impressions you receive, and act on them in faith.
✨ God is always speaking—are we listening?
One way I love to keep track of my prayers is by using a prayer journal. So many times, I have looked back on my prayers and realized how many had been answered that I didn’t realize at the time. We have a free prompted prayer journal for you to download and print out at home. Simply click the download button below.
How do you tell the difference between your own thoughts and the spirit? Let us know in the comments below.
Vanessa Rooney – LDS Mum
