What an excellent article I found today through afterthewarning.com http://catholicexchange.com/how-to-hear-god-speaking-to-you/ ........ God does not have to use external words and signs to attract our attention and convey ideas to us. He enters our minds directly. He speaks secretly, noiselessly, as befits the Divinity. It is only by faith that we know He is working in us. For example, God once spoke in a special, hidden way to St. Peter, who then confessed Jesus to be the Son of God. “Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jona,” said our Lord. “For flesh and blood hath not revealed this to thee, but my Father in Heaven.” St. John tells us that we will know all things from the Holy Spirit: “But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things.”St. Paul says that God enters our very thoughts: “Not that we are sufficient to think anything of ourselves, as of ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God.” God also enters our hearts and inspires us to holy desires. “And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, from the city of Thyatira, who worshiped God, was listening; and the Lord touched her heart to give heed to what was being said by Paul.” Thus, the Scriptures and the Church tell us that God speaks to us in the silence of our minds and hearts. He speaks to all men, but all men do not hear Him. God speaks to our mind and heart when we kneel to meditate or to adore Him in the Blessed Sacrament. He enters our mind when the passing things of time excite our thoughts. It is He who gives us holy thoughts to conquer our temptations. It is He who stirs up within us the desire to persevere against all adversaries......
I confessed to a priest a year or two ago. He is a very pleasant man but has some 'modernist' ideas that don't 'chime' too well with me but he is a good confessor. He gave me a penance that involved sitting in total silence for 5 minutes a day for seven days and opening myself to God. Nothing happened during the five minute periods except for a peaceful feeling but I started to have very vivid dreams at night on a variety of religious themes (I don't normally have such dreams) these were helpful as well as beautiful and I still do this exercise occasionally since that time. I did so today and am expecting the usual response in the next night or two. It taught me not to expect immediate 'feedback' but that, if I am patient, it will come. I would recommend this
