Discerning the Voice of God by Priscilla Shirer
Week 1: Introduction — The Listening Life
Read the Introduction of Discerning the Voice of God. Key passages: 1 Samuel 3:1–10; John 10:27.
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Before diving into the book's teaching, take a moment to honestly assess where you currently stand in your experience of hearing from God — the longings, the doubts, and the questions you're bringing to this study.
Discussion Questions
7 questions1.Priscilla Shirer opens by confessing that many believers live in spiritual frustration, longing to hear God but unsure whether they ever really do. How honestly does that describe you? What brought you to pick up this book or join this study?
2.Jesus says in John 10:27, "My sheep hear my voice." Shirer takes this as a promise, not merely a possibility. Does this feel like good news to you, or does it create pressure? Why?
3.The young Samuel heard God's voice but mistook it for the voice of Eli — he needed a mentor to help him understand what was happening. What does Samuel's story suggest about the role of community and spiritual guidance in learning to discern God's voice?
a.Who in your life has played an "Eli" role — helping you recognize when God might be speaking?
b.What was it about Samuel's response ("Speak, LORD, for your servant hears") that positioned him to receive God's message?
4.Shirer distinguishes between believing that God *can* speak and believing that God *does* speak — to ordinary people, in ordinary moments. Which of those two positions more accurately describes your current faith? What shaped that belief?
5.What assumptions or past experiences (positive or negative) are you bringing into this study that might shape the way you receive its teaching? Take a moment to name them honestly.
6.Shirer frames this entire book around the idea that Scripture is the primary filter for discerning God's voice. Even before reading the full argument, how does that resonate with you? Does it feel limiting or freeing — and why?
7.What is the one question about hearing God that you most hope this study will answer? Share it with your group and, if you're studying alone, write it in your journal as a prayer.
Closing Prayer
Lord, like Samuel we come saying, "Speak, for Your servant hears" — though we confess that we don't always know what Your voice sounds like, or whether we've been listening at all. Thank You for the promise in Your Word that Your sheep *do* hear Your voice — not because we are spiritually advanced, but because You are a God who speaks. As we begin this study, quiet the noise in us: our assumptions, our past hurts, our tendency to mistake other voices for Yours. Tune our ears to Scripture and our hearts to Your Spirit. We are here. We are listening. Amen.
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