A very practical how to book is "Communion with God" by Mark and Patti Virkler. I like this book, which is a workbook. It is written to help people who think so much that they don't have a good intuition of what is going on in their heart. I wrote a short review and have a link for buying it on Amazon at Virkler, "Communion with God".
A less "by the numbers" book, but one which I just finished and like a lot is by Leanne Payne and is called "Listening Prayer: Learning to Hear God's Voice and Keep a Prayer Journal". Her ministry has included a lot of inner healing, so those that are interested in inner healing will be doubly blessed by this book. An Amazon link: Payne, "Listening Prayer".
A similar book is one by Dallas Willard (though less inner healing), and is called "Hearing God". This is the man who inspired the spiritual disciplines movement, and is co-editor of the Renovare Study Bible. He's a university professor who loves Jesus! I like this book. An Amazon link: Willard, "Hearing God".
Joyce Meyer has written a couple of books on the subject, only one of which I have read. The one I read is called "Knowing God Intimately: Being as Close to Him as You Want to Be". Read my positive review and find a link for buying it from Amazon at Meyer, "Knowing God Intimately". Her other book which seems like it is on this topic is called "How to Hear From God: Learn to Know His Voice and Make the Right Decisions". The reason I haven't read it is because I had so many other "hearing from God books" I was working on, and it sounded like it overlapped with her other book. But now that I've read a little on Amazon, I think I might ask for this for my birthday! Joyce Meyer is very popular, so you can find her books at almost every Christian AND secular bookstore. An Amazon link for this latter book: Meyer, "How to Hear from God".
There are several classic books that are extremely helpful. By classic, I mean centuries old. But they are translated to English, and so don't seem so old. The first is a book by Madame Jeanne Guyon (she lived in the 17th century) called "Experiencing the Depths of Jesus Christ". I write a review of it at Guyon, "Experiencing the Depths". There is also a link to where you can download a free copy. The free copy is an older translation. If you try it and the translation doesn't work for you, don't give up on the newer translation, which I think is easier to understand. The Amazon link is to the new translation.
Another classic book is one by a friend of Guyon's, Bishop Francois Fenelon. It is called "Talking with God". An Amazon link: Fenelon, "Talking with God".
The last classic book I want to recommend is one by Brother Lawrence called "The Practice of the Presence of God". He also lived in the seventeenth century. This guy was a monk who talked with God 24/7 (well, at least when he was awake). He said he would rather talk to God in his kitchen work than talk with God in structured prayer, but he did the latter, too, so not to offend others. You can download a copy at Lawrence, "(Download) Practicing His Presence". If you're thinking of buying it, consider spending a couple bucks extra and get "Practice of the Presence", which combines a new translation of Brother Lawrence in the same book as writings from Frank Laubach, a missionary in the 1930s who tried talking with God 24/7. His experiment is interesting to read, as well. An Amazon link: Lawrence, "Practicing His Presence".
If you want to read about the idea of God speaking in our hearts, and how important our hearts are to living a rich, fulfilling Christian life, then read John Eldredge's "Waking the Dead: The Glory of a Heart Fully Alive ". This is sold almost everywhere, since Eldredge is so popular these days, and with good reason. This is probably my favorite book that I read in 2006. Amazon link: Eldredge, "Waking the Dead".
For some of my favorite quotes from these books and a few others, go to Favorite Quotes.
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