E41: Discerning God’s Will Together: Partnering with the Holy Spirit in Prayer and Decision Making

Have you ever struggled to hear God's guidance clearly? In this episode, Eric Scovill continues his conversation with Pastor Nathan Rychener on the topic of partnering with the Holy Spirit. They discuss practical tools for discerning God's will through prayer and partnership with the Holy Spirit. They explore the T-R-U-S-T prayer acronym, ways to wait on the Lord for answers, and developing a deeper relationship with Him over time. Nathan also shares insights from his own journey growing closer to God through praying in tongues. 

Here are some topics from today’s discussion:

• The TRUST prayer
• Different ways to wait on God for guidance when not receiving a clear answer right away
• Benefits of praying in tongues and ways to incorporate it into prayer time
• Looking at the current state of our spirituality and the American church
• Resources for developing a deeper relationship with God
• Partnering with the Holy Spirit for spiritual growth

Episode Highlights:

[07:54] Different Ways to Wait on God for Guidance

Nathan recommends continuing to pray and seek the Lord, rather than giving up after just one brief prayer time. Nathan also suggests taking the decision to trusted advisors in one's church, as the Holy Spirit may provide insight and counsel through other believers. Checking Scripture is another option as God may have already directly answered similar questions in His Word. Nathan acknowledges that demonic interference or a dull spiritual state could potentially cloud what one is hearing from God as well. Overall, he emphasizes the importance of submitting one's ways to God through prayer, talking to Him about the decision, and trusting Him to lead and show the way in His timing, even if clarity is not immediate.

[16:31] Understanding the Holy Spirit’s Gift of Tongues

Nathan seeks to provide biblical clarity around the often misunderstood gift of tongues. He notes that 1 Corinthians 14:2 tells us that speaking in tongues is directed towards God rather than men, as the speaker is uttering mysteries in the Spirit. This aligns with Paul's description in the passage of one who speaks in tongues building up their own spirit. It does not need to be an earthly language but can simply be spiritual speech between the believer and God. He points to Jude 20 which encourages Christians to build themselves up through praying in the Holy Spirit. Further defending the gift, Nathan shares Paul's own example from 1 Corinthians 14:18 of thanking God that he spoke in tongues more than all the Corinthians. This glimpse into the apostle's prayer life underscores the importance and value he placed upon exercising this spiritual gift.

[28:24] Partnering with the Holy Spirit for Spiritual Growth

Nathan clarifies that while God wants to partner with believers, the partnership must be understood from His perspective as master rather than as equals. Nathan emphasizes that the partnership is not about coming to God with our own selfish ambitions, but coming to learn and submit to His goals and dreams for our lives, existing to do His bidding and say yes to His direction rather than expecting Him to help achieve our own agendas. This helps bring clarity around properly understanding the partnership as one that promotes spiritual growth through following where God leads.

Resources Mentioned:

The Beauty of Spiritual Language by Jack Hayford

The Language of Heaven by Sam Storms