Participants: CA Murray (Host), Tom Ferguson, Mollie Steenson, Jill Morikone
Series Code: TDY
Program Code: TDY017054A
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00:01 I want to spend my life
00:07 Mending broken people 00:12 I want to spend my life 00:18 Removing pain 00:23 Lord, let my words 00:29 Heal a heart that hurts 00:34 I want to spend my life 00:40 Mending broken people 00:45 I want to spend my life 00:51 Mending broken people 01:07 Hello, and welcome to 3ABN Today, 01:10 my name is CA Murray. 01:11 Allow me once again to thank you 01:13 for sharing just a little of your 01:15 no doubt busy day with us. 01:18 So thank you for your love, your prayers, 01:19 and support of this ministry 01:21 because we are convinced and convicted 01:23 that we could not do what we are called to do 01:25 without your partnership. 01:26 So when we say, "Thank you," 01:28 we mean it from the bottom of our hearts 01:29 because it is together 01:31 that we lift up the mighty and matchless name of Jesus. 01:33 So we do thank you. 01:35 I'm excited today because of our program, 01:37 because of my guests or better said, 01:41 "family members", 01:42 and because of the subject matter 01:44 that we are trying to tackle to opine on this very day. 01:51 I think we should call this program 01:52 one in a series of programs 01:54 that deal with pragmatic Christianity. 01:57 You've got systematic theology, you've got doctrines, 02:00 those kinds of things, you've got prophecy, 02:02 all are very, very important. 02:04 But what is equally as important is 02:06 how do we walk with Jesus each and every day of our lives. 02:10 How do we make decisions, 02:11 how do we prosecute our lives... 02:14 the time that God has given us, 02:15 how do we make wise decisions 02:17 and how do we determine 02:19 whether a given course 02:22 that we want to pursue is given to us 02:25 by God or something that is in our own heart. 02:29 Is that rumbling that we feel in the pit of our stomach 02:33 the voice of God or is it pizza 02:35 that we ate a little late last night, 02:36 that kind of thing. 02:38 How do we determine the voice of God? 02:39 That's the subject matter we want to wrestle 02:41 with this very day on this program. 02:44 How do you know when it's God leading? 02:46 How do you know when God is telling you 02:48 to do a certain thing? 02:49 How do you amplify the voice of God 02:52 and sort of turn down the volume 02:53 on all of those other false voices 02:55 which may just as insistent and sometimes just as loud? 02:59 To help us wade through this very important chapter, 03:03 we have Jill Morikone. 03:04 Jill, good to have you here. 03:05 Thank you so much, Pastor. It's a privilege to be here. 03:07 Administrative Assistant to the president, 03:09 good to have you here. 03:10 Miss Mollie Steenson, 03:11 General Manager of 3ABN and Vice President of 3ABN. 03:16 Always a joy to be here. 03:18 And the pastor of the Marion district, 03:21 Pastor Ferguson, good to have you here, man. 03:22 Great to be here. 03:23 He is becoming a familiar and much welcomed face on 3ABN. 03:27 It's good to have you here. 03:28 He brings much wisdom and a nice pastoral slant 03:32 to the things that we're going to talk about, today. 03:35 Wanna start off with a little something 03:37 then go to music and then sort of loosen 03:39 and let you go 03:40 because we're talking about identifying the voice of God. 03:43 There are times in your life 03:45 when some things are very obvious. 03:47 There are other times when you want to do something 03:48 and you really need to know what the Lord is saying. 03:52 I give an example: Years ago before I married Irma, 03:55 she took me down to meet her parents. 03:58 Her family, they're all good swimmers 04:00 including her dad was in his 80s 04:02 I think at the time, 04:03 he used to get on the high cliffs and dive off. 04:05 They like to swim in rivers as opposed to the ocean, 04:08 lot of ocean, but they like fast flowing rivers. 04:12 And her dad would, in his socks, 04:14 climb on a high mountain and dive in just water. 04:17 I am not a swimmer at all. I don't swim. 04:23 Irma's family are all swimmers. 04:24 They decided to take a rubber raft 04:27 and go upstream and white water raft down. 04:30 And, you know, when you're dating someone 04:32 you try to impress them. 04:34 Of course. 04:35 But they were saying, "Well, let's go with us," you know, 04:37 and I was not impressed to do that. 04:41 You know, I said, 04:42 "Impression be hanged, I'm not going in that raft." 04:45 They said, "Come on, you're chickening," 04:46 that kind of thing. 04:47 I said, "I'll wait for you to come back." 04:49 So they grabbed this big inner tube 04:51 and they took it over the heads and they walked upstream. 04:53 Waited 15 minutes, 20 minutes, 25 minutes an hour, 04:57 an hour and 10, nobody is coming down. 05:00 Finally I see them coming down walking, 05:02 no raft, Irma's leg is bleeding, 05:05 my sister-in-law's glasses are broken, 05:08 my brother-in-law is bleeding. 05:10 And I said, "What happened?" 05:11 They said, "The raft flipped over 05:13 and we almost drowned." 05:15 Now, they're all good swimmers, they almost drowned. 05:18 I, a non-swimmer, 05:20 we wouldn't be here having this conversation today. 05:22 Thank you, Jesus, you did not get in the raft. 05:23 Right. 05:25 So, to me that was not a big handwriting 05:27 on the wall kind of thing. 05:29 Dangerous, I don't swim, why would I do that? 05:33 So that was not, that was not a tough decision for me, 05:36 but the truth is there are times 05:37 when you want to know the will of God. 05:40 Because you've got something the Lord is asking you to do, 05:42 you may be wading out into unfamiliar territory, 05:45 unfamiliar waters, and you need to know 05:47 what God's will is for your life, 05:49 like, should I marry her? 05:52 Should I marry him? 05:53 Should I move and take this job? 05:55 There are certain kinds of things 05:56 you just need to know the will of God. 05:58 And that's what we want to sort of wrestle with today. 06:01 How do we identify the voice of God 06:04 in and among all of these other voices 06:07 which are vying for our attention. 06:09 So we want to wrestle with that. 06:10 Before we sort of loosen and let you go, 06:12 we're gonna call upon Tim Parton, 06:14 a good friend of this ministry, 06:17 brother in Christ, member of the 3ABN family. 06:19 He is gonna be doing a song 06:21 that I've tried to sing many times 06:23 and every time I get about two lines, 06:25 and it makes me cry. 06:27 It's just a wonderful, wonderful, spiritual song, 06:30 "God's Been Good." 06:43 Lately I've been looking back along this winding road 06:50 To the old familiar markers 06:54 Of the mercies that I have known 06:59 I know it may sound simple 07:03 But it's more than a cliche 07:07 For there's no better way to tell you 07:11 Than to say 07:16 God's been good 07:21 In my life 07:25 And I feel blessed beyond my wildest dreams 07:31 When I go to sleep each night 07:34 And though I've had my share of hard times 07:38 I wouldn't change them if I could 07:43 For through it all, 07:47 God's been good 07:58 The times replay, and I can see 08:02 That I've cried some bitter tears 08:05 But I've felt His arms around me 08:09 As I've faced my greatest fears 08:13 You see, I've had more gains than losses 08:17 And I've known more joy than hurt 08:21 As His grace rolled down upon me 08:27 So undeserved 08:29 For God's been good in my life 08:37 And I feel blessed beyond my wildest dreams 08:43 When I go to sleep each night 08:46 And though I've had my share of hard times 08:51 I wouldn't change them if I could 08:55 For through it all, 08:59 God's been good 09:04 For you see God has been my Father, 09:08 My Savior, and my Friend 09:11 And His love was my beginning and His love will be my end 09:19 Oh, I could spend forever trying to tell you everything 09:27 He is But the best way 09:34 That I can say it is simply this 09:43 God's been good 09:49 In my life 09:53 And I feel so blessed beyond my wildest dreams 10:00 When I go to sleep each night 10:03 And though I've had my share of hard times 10:09 I wouldn't change them if I could 10:13 For through it all 10:22 God's been good 10:48 Amen. What a beautiful song. 10:50 So beautifully ministered by Tim Parton, "God's been good". 10:55 We are talking about 10:56 a dealing with identifying the voice of God. 10:59 Jill Morikone, Mollie Steenson, Pastor Tom Ferguson, 11:01 good to have you all here. 11:03 I want to set this up before I loose you by saying, 11:06 in our lives, 11:09 when you're trying to make a decision, 11:10 particularly when you're trying to do something 11:12 for the Lord... 11:16 You've got the natural testing of the Lord, 11:19 the Lord allows tests to come into our lives, 11:22 one to determine for us our own sincerity 11:27 because He knows, 11:29 then you've got the natural inertia 11:31 that comes any time you're trying to do something 11:33 for the Lord. 11:34 You know, you just, your sinful condition 11:36 will try to hold you back. 11:38 Then you've got active resistance by the devil. 11:42 Then you've got times when the Lord is saying, 11:44 "No, this is not the way." 11:47 So you've got a minimum of four realities 11:51 that you've got to work your way through. 11:54 Is this just the natural resistance that comes 11:58 when I'm trying to do something for the Lord 12:00 or is it just the Lord closing a door? 12:02 Is this a flat no or is this just demonic resistance? 12:07 So how do you wade your way through on being opposed, 12:10 is it me, is it the devil, is it the Lord, 12:13 is it my own inertia? 12:15 Which is behind door number four? 12:18 Which is the real one? 12:20 And we need to know that 12:21 because we want to do the will of God. 12:22 So how do you determine the voice of God? 12:24 I've got some things here, 12:26 but I wanna, sort of, let you go 12:27 and then I will sort of chime in this a little bit. 12:28 Who wants to take it off? 12:30 You know, in my own experience 12:31 I was just thinking it seems like 12:33 when Satan comes, this is something that helps me 12:37 when I try to make a decision or when I'm facing something, 12:40 Satan's voice or voices, you know, 12:43 he uses other people too to push back against that. 12:47 His voice would always be one of judgment, condemnation, 12:52 shame while the voice of Jesus is the voice of encouragement, 12:58 hope, and conviction. 13:00 The Holy Spirit does bring conviction 13:02 to our heart and to our life. 13:03 So to me in my own experience 'cause I have faced that, 13:06 "Okay, is this something should I not be going here 13:09 because I don't feel good about this. 13:11 Is this... 13:12 Or is that Satan just trying to bring discouragement?" 13:16 And I think Satan always brings discouragement. 13:18 Satan always wants you to feel hopeless, like, 13:21 "Why do you try? 13:22 You'll never be good at that. 13:24 You know, you can't do that." 13:25 Where God says, "You are my child, I love you. 13:31 I have a future and a hope for you." 13:32 So I think when I'm facing things, 13:34 if I'm feeling discouraged 13:36 always know the devil's in that. 13:39 I like that. 13:41 We have a statement by Ellen White, 13:42 I'm bringing it off the top where she says, 13:45 "The Lord never sends discouragement. 13:47 That is not a tool or weapon in His arsenal. 13:50 Discouragement always comes from Satan. 13:52 There is enough in the world to be discouraged about 13:55 without the Lord sending you discouragement." 13:56 So if you're, nobody knows the trouble 13:58 I've seen as, Mollie, 14:00 I'm gonna say, I was just gonna sit down and eat worms, 14:01 that's not from the Lord. 14:02 That's not from the Lord. He doesn't send discouragement. 14:05 He will correct you, He will chastise you 14:06 but He will not discourage you. 14:08 He's not designed to do that, that comes from the enemy. 14:10 So I think that's one good rule book 14:13 that we can put down. 14:14 If it's a discouraging thought, 14:16 if it's, "I can't do it, it's not about me. 14:19 I'm never gonna succeed," that's not from the Lord 14:21 because He doesn't work that way. 14:23 It's not in His arsenal. 14:24 Well said, Mollie? 14:26 Well, I was thinking, I remember when early Christian 14:29 and people would say, 14:32 "The Lord told me this or God spoke this to me" 14:35 and I kept trying to hear the voice of God 14:38 and He never would speak to me, 14:39 I've never heard the voice of God." 14:41 To this day I have not heard of... 14:45 Audible. An audible, loud voice. 14:47 So here are three little things that may help you 14:51 if you're looking to get direction from the Lord. 14:55 First and foremost, 14:57 God's voice is always consistent with His Word. 14:59 Amen. 15:01 He'll never tell you to do anything 15:03 and then the scripture tell you something different. 15:05 It's always consistent with His word. 15:07 And here's the thing that helped me, 15:10 His voice is quiet. 15:12 Yes. 15:13 He's not going to speak loudly too, it would... 15:17 Oh, it would be so good 15:19 if they would just come sit down with you 15:20 and just you know, tell you, 15:23 "Are you hearing it, Mollie, 15:24 I want you to do this, this, and this." 15:26 It's a quiet voice. 15:27 It's that inner witness, and the Lord speaks clearly, 15:31 it's not garbled. 15:33 You don't have to wonder what He's telling you. 15:35 When the Lord gives you direction 15:37 it's first and foremost consistent with His word, 15:40 it's a quiet voice, 15:42 and we know the scripture where He wasn't in the thunder, 15:47 He wasn't in the lightning, He was... 15:50 It was the still small voice that God spoke to, 15:53 I believe it was Elijah that He was speaking to. 15:55 Still small voice and He will give you clear direction. 15:59 You don't have to wonder what direction to take 16:02 if it's the north or the south, He'll give you clear direction. 16:05 Yeah. I like all three. 16:08 History has shown 16:09 that when God asks you to do something 16:13 there tends to be not a lot of grey area. 16:16 It's either kind of, yea or nay, come or go, 16:20 not a lot of hazy area. 16:22 And this idea that He's not gonna shout, 16:26 He's not gonna try to speak over your television set, 16:28 He's not gonna try to blast over your car radio. 16:30 Sometimes you've got to turn all of that ambient stuff off 16:34 so that you can distinctly hear the voice of God. 16:36 You got to listen for the voice of God 16:38 and then you got be in the mindset to accept 16:41 what you're going to hear. 16:42 That's it. 16:44 I don't think God is under any obligation, pastor, 16:45 to give you information 16:48 that you're gonna toss in the trash can. 16:49 Right. 16:51 You know, first up there must be a willingness to do 16:54 then you will know. 16:55 It seems counterintuitive 16:57 but that's the way God will have. 16:58 If you say, "Lord, whatever you show me 16:59 I'm willing to do," 17:01 well, now He's on the line to show you. 17:03 But if you have no intention of doing, 17:05 then why would he show you 17:06 something that is not that you don't intend on doing. 17:08 Pastor, what do you think? 17:10 You know, whereas as you mentioned the still small voice 17:13 and that's 1 Kings 19 and when Elijah... 17:18 Actually he was in the situation 17:19 where he was afraid of the voices of the enemy. 17:23 And he was in hiding and God comes up to him 17:27 with His still small voice and says, 17:29 "I have a work for you to do." 17:31 First He shows him His strength, His power, 17:33 but He speaks to him, 17:34 He gives him the assurance that He's there 17:36 and He's more powerful than all these other voices. 17:38 The still small voice is what beckoned Elijah to go 17:43 and to set up kings, to call Elisha into ministry. 17:48 God was not finished with him. 17:49 He had a work for him to do. 17:51 And oftentimes the enemy can paralyze us 17:54 and have us afraid of the obstacles 17:57 instead of the opportunities that God has for us. 18:01 When I think of my own journey in hearing the voice of God, 18:04 you mentioned earlier that where I can't do that, 18:07 I can't do that, you know, I will say to myself, 18:09 "That's right, I can't do that but God qualifies the called." 18:13 Amen. 18:14 "And He can do that through me 18:16 if He wants to and I do not belong there 18:19 unless it's the voice of God taking me there 18:21 and then sustaining me while I'm there." 18:24 And that is a journey we're all on. 18:28 And I don't know how, well, as matter of fact, 18:31 Jesus was a supreme example of that voice. 18:35 I do have a text if you'd like to... 18:38 Let's go to Isaiah 50. 18:41 As I was doing some study, 18:44 I was thinking about these verses 4 and 5, 18:46 Isaiah 50:4-5. 18:51 And this is actually about the servant, 18:53 the servant of God which He asks us all to be, 18:57 and in verse 4 the second half it says, 19:00 "He awakens me morning by morning." 19:02 Yes. 19:03 I don't know if anybody else here 19:05 have God wake you in the morning, 19:06 would that be the voice of God, 19:07 'cause I think that's in line what we're talking about. 19:10 "He awakens my ear to hear as the learned." 19:15 So in other words your school master 19:17 is the Lord himself. 19:20 And then verse 5, "The Lord God has opened my ear 19:23 and I was not rebellious nor did I turn away." 19:27 And verse 6 talks about giving his back 19:29 to those that struck him 19:30 and his cheeks to those that plucked out his beard." 19:33 So it was the voice of God that led Jesus into the wilderness, 19:36 it was the voice of God that led Him to the cross, 19:40 and the reason why He was able to go 19:42 through those experience is 19:43 because He had the voice of God 19:45 He had been listening to His entire life. 19:48 I was amazed when I see that Jesus sees the sanctuary 19:52 for the first time at age 12 and realizes that's about Him 19:57 and God's call in His life. 19:59 He was listening to the voice of God 20:02 and the ones around Him 20:03 when He actually turned the tables over 20:06 with the money changers, 20:08 they were listening to all these other voices 20:10 but He knew the voice of God throughout His entire life 20:13 and He's a supreme example for me to understand 20:16 when God is calling in my life as well. 20:18 Yeah, I like that. 20:19 I like something you brought up, Pastor Tom, 20:21 about the relationship that reminds me, 20:23 if we can go to John 10... 20:25 Yeah. It reminds me of that. 20:28 I had six keys for identifying the voice of God 20:32 and I know we'll probably discuss all different keys here 20:35 but my first one was what you had mentioned Mollie, 20:36 the Word of God. 20:38 Making sure everything lines up with the Word of God 20:41 because God's voice will never speak 20:43 contrary to His Word. 20:46 But then the second one is the relationship 20:49 and you touched on that, Pastor Tom. 20:50 John 10, this is the "good shepherd and the sheep", 20:54 and it's interesting to me that John 9 comes before John 10, 20:58 I mean, obviously chronologically they do 21:00 but John 9, of course, 21:02 is the man who was born blind and then he received his sight. 21:05 And remember the false teachers 21:08 you could say had instructed the Pharisees, 21:11 the Sadducees, the religious leaders of that day 21:14 had instructed the people that if you had an ailment, 21:20 if you had an issue it was due to sin in your life. 21:24 Remember the disciples said, "Who sinned? 21:26 Was it this man or his parents?" 21:28 And Jesus said, "Neither," 21:30 it's that God could be glorified. 21:32 But it's interesting that just after chapter 9, 21:35 we jump into chapter 10 21:36 and I think there's a certain reason for that. 21:40 John 10:1, "Most assuredly, I say to you, 21:45 he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, 21:48 but climbs up some other ways the thief and the robber," 21:51 and I think Jesus is saying, 21:52 "You have been sitting under false teachers, 21:54 you have been listening to false teachers." 21:57 "He who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep." 22:00 And then as we jump down verse 4, I love this, 22:03 "When he brings out his own sheep, 22:04 he goes before them and the sheep follow him," Why? 22:09 "For they know his voice." 22:13 So how can I think, "Okay, 22:16 I want to identify the voice of God, 22:19 but how can I identify the voice of God 22:22 unless I know him? 22:23 Unless I know Jesus and I'm friends with him?" 22:27 You know, if you're in a crowded room 22:28 and there's a lot of noise 22:30 and all of a sudden Greg talks, guess what, 22:32 I can hear his voice. 22:33 Right. 22:34 Because I know and instantly 22:36 I recognize or identify his voice. 22:38 Or my office is down the hall from, 22:40 you know, the door at the end there 22:42 and when my boss, Danny Shelton walks in, 22:45 sometimes I can hear his voice when he walks in and I think, 22:48 "Oh, good, he's in the office. 22:50 I gotta catch him and ask him to do this and that," 22:52 because you recognize somebody's voice. 22:54 And I think that's key in identifying 22:57 when God speaks to me, 22:58 I have to fall in love with Him, 23:00 I have to know Him intimately. 23:03 Well said. 23:04 You know, the Bible says, 23:06 "Ask us to let this mind be in you 23:07 which is also in Christ Jesus." 23:09 There are certain prerequisites to hearing the voice of God. 23:14 I was watching the National Geographic Special ones 23:16 and it was talking about penguins 23:19 hearing the call of the parent penguin 23:22 and you've got half a million birds, 23:24 all squawking but they can pick out... 23:27 mama can pick out child and child can pick out mama 23:30 because you become attuned to that voice. 23:34 The Bible tells us that 23:35 spiritual things are spiritually discerned. 23:37 So you must have a spiritual mind 23:39 if you're going to undertake to do spiritual things. 23:43 Ellen White says, she said in Review and Herald, 23:45 this is August in 1888 that, 23:48 "There is no need to try to exercise yourself 23:52 in spiritual realms 23:54 unless you have the spirit of God 23:56 animating that exercise and directing how it's done. 24:00 So you need to have God's direction and God's plan 24:04 and if you don't have them, 24:05 then you're not sure you're on the right track. 24:07 You got to be accustomed to hearing the voice of God 24:10 which presupposes that you're prayed up 24:14 before you begin to act up. 24:16 You know, you got to be prayed up, 24:17 you got to talk with Him 24:19 and open up that line of communication 24:20 so that when, 24:21 you know, you got to watch and pray, 24:23 because if you're watching and not praying 24:25 you'll see it and miss it, 24:26 if you're praying and not watching 24:28 when it happens you're not ready to act, 24:29 you're not ready act on it. 24:31 So you must watch and pray, 24:32 then you'll be ready to act on what God shows you to do. 24:34 Mollie? 24:35 You know, Psalms 46:10, 24:37 "Be still, and know that I am God." 24:41 I don't know about you 24:43 and I hope this isn't true for you, 24:44 but it seems like the busyness in my life 24:49 keeps me so preoccupied 24:50 and there's so much to do and what I need to do, 24:55 I'm just gonna speak for myself, 24:57 is fix my receiver to get still, to be still... 25:02 Absolutely. 25:03 And put myself in a position to hear that still small voice. 25:07 I get my ear attuned and how do you do that is, 25:10 you know, spending time. 25:11 There is no quick fix, there is no easy quick way 25:17 for you to put yourself in right relationship with God 25:20 and get your heart prepared to receive. 25:22 It takes spending time in his presence. 25:25 It's, you know, we are such a quick fix people 25:29 and we are so busy to... 25:31 Pastor Ferguson, are you ever too busy? 25:34 Do we ever... Never, never, what is that? 25:35 What is... Yeah. 25:37 We catch ourselves at times 25:41 just rushing from one thing to another, 25:44 there has got to be time and the best time in the world, 25:46 and boy, and I'm speaking to myself, 25:49 is those early morning hours where... 25:52 And I think we said earlier at 4 o'clock in the morning 25:56 when you wake up, 25:57 the enemy wouldn't wake you up 25:58 and tell you to pray at 4 o'clock in the morning. 26:01 That's gonna be God telling... 26:03 that time of early morning prayer 26:05 when you're the freshest just being God in His presence 26:09 and spend time in God's presence 26:11 and allow Him to speak to your heart, 26:13 spend time in His word, 26:14 and let the busyness of this world just melt away 26:18 and spend time with Him. 26:20 It's good. 26:21 I was just thinking too that everyone who is in ministry 26:25 and we all are ministers, 26:27 when you are ministering, 26:28 it is, God can be the voice of God to someone else 26:32 that needs that voice. 26:35 And unless you're in the condition 26:37 that you just stated, 26:38 it's impossible for you to be a minister that day 26:41 or that moment. 26:42 I wanted to look at John 10 again 26:45 and 'cause there's a couple of other things 26:46 that I saw there too that were pretty neat. 26:49 If we go to verse 2, it says, 26:51 "To Him, the doorkeeper opens and the sheep hear his voice." 26:57 Do you know who the doorkeepers are when I study that out? 26:59 His disciples. 27:02 And I thought, "Wow, that is really neat." 27:06 God has a calling for us to help others 27:08 hear the voice of God. 27:10 Do you ever wonder if there is one voice 27:13 and everyone thinks they're following that voice 27:15 and there's 30,000 plus denominations out there, 27:19 and we're all thinking we're hearing His voice. 27:24 I just recently officiated a funeral 27:27 and I heard a lot of different voices out there 27:30 as to what is happening with that individual right now, 27:33 and yeah, we're opening the same Bible. 27:36 So what voice are we listening to? 27:38 And one of the things that I find encouraging, 27:40 if you go down to verse 16, 27:45 first of all He says in verse 14, 27:47 "I know my sheep and I'm known by my own." 27:50 "And other sheep I have," verse 16, 27:53 "Which are not of this fold, them also I must bring, 27:57 and they will hear my voice, and there will be one flock, 28:00 and one shepherd." 28:02 Recently, I had someone tell me that... 28:06 Going to attend a church two years ago 28:08 and it was going to be their first 28:10 and their very last time 28:11 they were ever gonna go to a church. 28:13 Oh, wow. 28:14 But God had been calling on their lives, 28:16 they didn't recognize it was the voice of God yet, 28:19 but He had been working with them 28:21 and that was their testimony. 28:22 He works on us before we know Him personally, 28:25 He draws us. 28:26 And when he went to that church it was a beautiful sermon, 28:29 there was an altar call and he found himself 28:31 standing in the front of the church 28:33 and he hasn't missed church since. 28:34 Amen. 28:36 So the voice of God in the beginning, 28:38 in the early reign is it has a converting effect, 28:41 and the voice of God as we continue 28:43 has a sanctifying effect making us like Jesus. 28:47 So that's one of the key indicators for me 28:50 if it's the voice of God it's either drawing us to Him, 28:52 making us more like Him, 28:54 usually means we have to sacrifice 28:55 may be what we think is best to what He knows is best. 29:00 And that's key 29:02 but, yeah, there's still a lot of confusion in this world 29:05 about the voice of God, 29:07 and for instance when two Christians disagree, 29:11 where is the voice of God in that situation? 29:16 I think one of the things that we should always remember 29:21 with few exceptions, God does not make, 29:24 and I'm thinking of rather specific circumstances here, 29:28 God will not make an exception for you 29:32 to a established biblical principle. 29:37 We should not be unequally yoked. 29:42 But he's handsome and he's got a good job, 29:45 and he treats me nice and she's gorgeous and... 29:49 So God is gonna give me a pass 29:53 because God wants me to be happy. 29:56 In fact, I have a good friend, a Korean fellow, 30:00 who is Presbyterian and he works seven days a week, 30:03 he works all day, he owns three dry cleaners. 30:07 He does his own books, his own accounting. 30:09 He banks his money himself. 30:10 He opens them himself, he closes them himself. 30:13 He has a degree 30:14 from the Culinary Institute of America. 30:16 He cooks for his family. 30:17 So when he leaves the dry cleaners 30:18 he goes home and his family sitting at a table 30:20 waiting for him to come and cook... 30:21 Bless him. 30:23 Then on Sunday he sings in a choir, 30:24 he cooks for the church. 30:25 And I told him... 30:27 When does he rest? You are going to die. 30:29 You can't keep up that schedule. 30:32 What he says, "I like money 30:35 and I work seven days a week to have money 30:38 and that makes me happy and God wants me to be happy." 30:40 That's his theology. 30:44 But you're killing yourself, 30:45 you know, he is getting old and getting old fast. 30:48 So he thinks God is gonna make an exception 30:50 to health laws for him, 30:53 because my family needs me to cook. 30:55 So they sit with their hands folded 30:56 waiting for me to come home and cook. 30:58 And they're just sitting at the table waiting for me, 31:00 so God is going to keep me 31:02 while I just butcher these health laws 31:04 because I'm the exception to the rule 31:07 that if you burn the candle at both ends 31:09 you're going to burn the candle out." 31:10 God doesn't do that... That's right. 31:12 God doesn't do that. 31:13 He's sincere but he is sincerely wrong. 31:16 And there are doctors who own yachts and Mercedes 31:20 and big mansions 31:22 because people think that they can abrogate health laws 31:25 and God's gonna make an exception just for them, 31:26 that ain't so. 31:28 So God is not gonna make an exception for you. 31:30 You've got to follow those laws and principles 31:32 that are laid down by the Lord. 31:34 You know, people who have heard the voice of God 31:39 and ignored it, they know it. 31:40 That's right. 31:41 It doesn't escape them 31:43 and I just wanted to can to address that because... 31:49 God will redeem that. 31:51 He can redeem... 31:52 If you spend time with Him and put yourself back 31:56 in the right relation with the Lord, 31:58 although you, you know that He spoke to you 32:02 and He gave you direction, 32:04 told you not to do this or to do this 32:06 and you ignored that, 32:08 then you find yourself in a situation, 32:11 may be a bad situation, 32:12 and although your circumstance may not change, 32:16 God can redeem you. 32:17 That's right. 32:19 So spend time with Him, He will reward your devotion, 32:23 that's what He will reward. 32:24 And so don't, don't put... 32:26 And I just wanted to ask, have you ever said to yourself, 32:30 "I knew I shouldn't have done it when I did it," 32:33 but it was the practical thing to do 32:36 and you were being pressured to do it 32:38 but there was just this knowing in your mind that, 32:41 "I am about to do the wrong thing 32:43 but it seemed so right that you did it." 32:47 You know, it's amazing because... 32:49 I don't mean to cut you off, Mollie... 32:50 No, no, not at all. 32:51 It's amazing because I think that we say as Christians, 32:55 "Oh, I struggle hearing and knowing the voice of God," 32:58 and there were times that we do, 32:59 but I think in my own experience 33:01 more often than not I struggle obeying the voice of God. 33:05 I struggle following what I know God wants me to do. 33:09 You read Pastor Tom in Isaiah 50, 33:12 "The Lord has given me the tongue of the learned," 33:14 that one in the end of verse 5, 33:17 "The Lord has opened my ear and I was not rebellious 33:20 nor did I turn away," 33:21 but how many times does God call for our heart 33:24 and say, "Okay, Jill, I want you to step out 33:27 in this decision. 33:28 I want you to do this" 33:29 and I say, "but it looks too hard, 33:31 it looks too big. 33:33 I don't want to do that," or it goes against my flesh, 33:37 my own desires, 33:39 and so then I say, "I don't want to do it." 33:41 Yes, go ahead, I'm sorry. 33:42 Yeah, just don't want to pay the price, sorry to interrupt. 33:44 Yeah, no, absolutely. 33:45 So, yeah, so it's a great point, Mollie. 33:48 Yeah. 33:49 You know, I wanted you to give, and I'm sure all of us will, 33:53 examples where the Lord spoke to me 33:57 and it wasn't, again, it wasn't that verbal voice 33:59 and one of them is just, just practical 34:03 how to make right decisions in the ministry, 34:06 and the other one does have 34:07 more of a spiritual connotation to it, 34:10 but I remember one time 34:12 the then Production Manager came to my office 34:17 because they were having a bit of an issue on the set 34:20 and what it was, you know, 34:22 I'll explain this as carefully as I can. 34:25 We had two gentlemen, 34:26 they were physicians I believe 34:29 it was from Andrews University 34:31 and they were giving an illustration or instruction 34:34 on how women were to check themselves every month, 34:38 check their breasts every month for lumps 34:43 which is a very practical thing for us to learn how to do. 34:46 And so what they have was... 34:48 a mannequin, a dummy 34:51 and it was very modest 34:56 but they still felt like it could be misconstrued. 35:01 And they also wanted my hands because they were women 35:04 and they didn't want to show a man... 35:05 That's right. 35:06 Just so they were gonna use my hands. 35:08 But they said, you know, 35:09 "What can we do to make this even more modest?" 35:12 Well, this was asked me in my office. 35:14 While, as I was coming through the lobby 35:17 the word blurring was dropped into my heart, 35:20 or blurring came to my mind, wherever it came, and blurring. 35:25 Well, I had no idea what they were actually gonna ask me 35:28 but when we got out to the set there it was, 35:30 "What can we do to make this more modest?" 35:33 And I said, "Well, 35:35 isn't there a thing called blurring that we could do?" 35:37 They said, "Why didn't we think of that?" 35:39 Well, see I knew I didn't think of that, it's... 35:41 That's right. So was that the voice of God? 35:43 It sure wasn't me. 35:44 So I think the Lord... 35:46 see how that's just practical. 35:47 God's given you instruction on what to do. 35:50 And then in Sabbath school, 35:53 all of this was maybe four or five weeks ago, 35:57 a lady, her name is Maria, she is now here, 36:01 she is a volunteer, a wonderful volunteer here at 3ABN. 36:05 Well, she was from another area and she was reading her Bible 36:10 and heard a sermon by her pastor 36:14 and it was talking about God setting His families in flocks. 36:20 And she... 36:22 that just really dropped into her heart... 36:24 You mean the solitary in families? 36:26 Well, I've got the scripture here, 36:28 it's Psalm 68:6, "God sets the solitary in families," 36:32 in Psalms 107:41, "Makes families like a flock." 36:35 "God sets the solitary in families," 36:38 that's Psalm 68:6. 36:39 Well, she was reading that scripture 36:41 and then the sermon and she said, 36:44 "You know, I want to be part of a family 36:47 and 3ABN is my family. 36:49 I'm a part of the blessing is on the go, 36:52 and I'm part of the family already. 36:55 So I'm gonna go down to 3ABN and volunteer 37:00 and see if this isn't where the Lord has directed me." 37:02 She felt so strongly that God was directing her in that area. 37:06 So she came in to Sabbath school class 37:08 and she came a little late 37:10 because she had a little difficulty 37:11 getting to the church, 37:13 and just as she walked into the classroom 37:16 and sat down, 37:18 now this scripture wasn't in my Sabbath school lesson, 37:22 it's just the Lord strongly impressed upon my heart 37:26 for me to use this scripture 37:28 in one of the examples that I was using. 37:30 So I told her, so I was speaking to the class 37:34 and the Lord tells us in Psalm 68:6, 37:37 "God sets the solitary in families," 37:40 and that was the very scripture 37:42 that God had impressed upon her heart 37:45 when she said it's time for me to, 37:48 you know, to go volunteer at 3ABN. 37:50 So that was an... 37:53 where God impressed upon my heart 37:55 to put that scripture into my Sabbath School lesson 38:01 and did I know that the Lord was speaking that to me? 38:04 Well, I was hoping He was 38:05 'cause I always pray and ask the Lord to help, 38:07 Lord, help when you're putting a lesson together. 38:10 That one was just a practical example here 38:14 of something we do here at 3ABN 38:16 and one it really helped that lady know that 38:19 this really was what God wanted. 38:21 Amen. 38:22 But you know what, that's an example of, 38:24 is that is God using you 38:26 to speak and share the voice of God 38:28 into someone else's life, 38:30 you know, because as we come before God 38:32 and we look at the scripture 38:34 and we want to walk and surrender 38:36 whatever God calls for us, whatever He wants us to do. 38:39 But at the same time God uses each other. 38:42 God uses people to speak into other people's lives. 38:45 Yes. 38:47 Who can say, Pastor Tom can say, 38:48 "You know what, Jill, the Lord has put this" 38:49 on my heart for you, and you know what? 38:51 That could be the voice of God 38:52 coming through someone else sharing. 38:54 Very true, very true. Absolutely. 38:56 As a matter of fact in a corporate sense 38:58 when the majority of the church 39:00 is listening to the voice of God, worship happens. 39:03 Do you ever wonder how people 39:04 from so many different backgrounds 39:06 view life so differently could come together 39:08 and have unity and peace and worship? 39:11 I have prepared sermons 39:13 and I say, "Lord, I don't know 39:15 what Your people need to hear today 39:16 or this weekend but You do and please put this together." 39:22 He puts a message in my heart, I put the message out on paper 39:26 and then I open up my quarterly 39:28 and discover the Sabbath School lesson 39:30 is the exact same theme. 39:32 Then someone comes into special music, 39:35 they sing a song that is right in tune with the theme. 39:38 Someone does a children story 39:39 and it fits right in with the theme 39:41 and none of us had a conversation beforehand. 39:43 So when the voice of God is in control of His church, 39:46 there's unity. 39:48 I think about when we no longer have sin 39:51 and we're spending eternity with God and pre-impose sin, 39:55 everyone was listening to the voice of God. 39:58 Self was crucified and God was, His voice was driving things. 40:04 And that's all He's calling us to again as a church 40:07 is to allow that to happen, 40:08 and He's going to work through us 40:11 as we allow it to actually have 40:14 transformational effects on others. 40:16 It's a blessing for us as it blesses others. 40:19 But the voice of God must reign supreme in the Christian's life 40:23 and that's when we see 40:25 mountains move and we see the hand of God in everything. 40:28 Amen. Well said, well said. 40:30 You know, yesterday, 40:31 no, just a couple of days ago I guess, 40:33 on Sabbath, Pastor John Lomacang was preaching 40:37 and I'm always blessed when he ministers 40:39 but for some reason 40:41 this Sabbath I was especially ministered to. 40:43 And Greg and I were sitting there in the pew 40:46 and all of a sudden he shared something 40:50 that as soon as he spoke it was just like, 40:53 I don't know how else to explain it, 40:54 it was just as if each word 40:56 just went straight into my heart... 41:01 and it was what I needed. 41:03 Now, he didn't know I was struggling with something, 41:06 he didn't know there was an issue in my life 41:09 and then as soon as he said that, 41:11 the Holy Spirit said, 41:13 "Jill, that is what you're dealing with." 41:14 Well, I didn't even know what I was dealing with. 41:16 I didn't even know what the issue was, 41:19 I just knew there was something going on 41:20 but I couldn't identify it. 41:23 And when he spoke, the Holy Spirit used him. 41:25 Yes. 41:26 And the Holy Spirit spoke conviction to my heart. 41:30 And then I can go back and say, "Oh Father, 41:32 thank You for showing me what's in my heart 41:35 and I repent of that. 41:37 And I ask that you would cleanse me, 41:40 give me clean hands, as Mollie always says, 41:42 and a pure heart. 41:44 And so praise the Lord, He uses each one of us 41:47 to speak a word into someone else's life. 41:49 Amen. 41:51 Life has convicted me of the following. 41:53 One that if you are willing to be led and used of God, 41:58 He is more willing to lead you and use you 42:02 than you are to be used and led. 42:05 He is very willing to give you 42:07 and quite able to give you good gifts 42:09 and to direct your steps. 42:12 2 Corinthians 8 tells us, 42:14 "First there must be a willing mind." 42:17 So before you even ask to be directed 42:19 or to be used or to be led, you have to say, 42:23 "I am willing to be directed and led." 42:26 And that opens the way for God to lead and to use you. 42:31 A pastor came to the pulpit with a mind 42:33 that was willing to be used and led. 42:37 And so we know one person 42:39 that he was used to bless and that was you. 42:42 And of course, there were many, many others 42:43 in that congregation. 42:46 So if you want to know the will of God, 42:49 God wants you to know His will. 42:51 He is not trying to keep anything from you. 42:53 What is it? 42:54 Amos 3 says, "Surely the Lord will do nothing." 42:57 And, of course, that's talking about big things 42:59 but even in little things, 43:00 in little should I go should I not, 43:03 should I spend this, should I save it, 43:04 should I stay home and wait, 43:06 you know, or should I go to the store, 43:08 even in those little things God is willing to... 43:10 I don't think there is anything that comes against us 43:13 or that we deal with that is beneath the notice of God. 43:16 Amen. 43:17 He is as willing to be involved 43:18 in as intimate of the details of your life 43:22 as you're willing to allow Him to be involved 43:24 in those intimate little details. 43:25 "Where are my keys?" 43:27 God cares about that. 43:28 "I got to get to work, I need to find my keys. 43:31 Lord, I need to find my keys," you'll find you keys. 43:34 You know, He's... 43:35 And the thing is and I say this quickly, 43:37 if you are accustomed to bringing the Lord 43:39 into your life into little things like keys, 43:41 when the big stuff comes, like you go to the doctor 43:43 and the doctor says, "That's cancer," 43:45 or the doctor says, "We don't know what that is, 43:47 we don't know how to treat it." 43:49 You don't lose your religion or your mind 43:52 because you've been walking with the Lord 43:54 over those little things 43:55 so when the big stuff comes you know where God is, 43:57 you want to go searching. 43:59 It's too late to go find God in the rainy storm. 44:02 You find God in the sunshiny day 44:04 so that when the storm comes and the lights are out 44:06 and there's nobody to direct you, 44:08 you walk that path... 44:11 I am a male over 50. 44:14 I get up at night and go several times to the restroom, 44:18 happens when you get over 50. 44:20 I never put on a light. 44:21 First of all, it disturbs Irma, so I get up and I know the way. 44:24 I don't bump into anything 44:26 unless there's something there that God left. 44:27 I know how to go into the bathroom 44:28 do what I have to do, wash my hands, 44:30 put the towel back and go to bed 44:31 in total darkness, why? 44:32 Because I have radar? 44:34 No, I've done it so many times, I've worn that path. 44:37 So now when something comes that I'm not ready for, 44:41 I know where God is. 44:42 I don't have to say, "Jill, could you show me Jesus?" 44:45 I know Jesus, I can find Him for myself. 44:48 I've walked that path during a sunshiny day 44:50 so now that when the clouds come, 44:52 I can make it there because I've done it all the time. 44:54 So you bring Him into the little things 44:57 and then when the big things come, 44:58 you know the voice because you've heard that voice 45:00 so many times. 45:02 If we have time I just want to share too. 45:04 I wonder how many people missed out 45:06 because they said no to the voice of God 45:08 to the point where Zachariah, 45:11 they refused to listen and Zachariah 7:11-13 45:14 and Jeremiah 6:10, 45:15 "Who will listen," God's pleading. 45:17 Who's going listen to me?" 45:19 It took the Lord five years to call me to the literature work, 45:22 to be a literature evangelist. 45:24 And I kept saying no, 45:25 I hate salesman, I don't like them. 45:27 And poor Ron being the publishing director, 45:29 I come into his office 45:30 and he had one objection after the other. 45:32 As a matter of fact, after 14 years in literature work 45:34 I never heard anyone else 45:36 use all of the objections I used on that one man 45:38 trying to get out of the work that God kept calling me to. 45:41 I had my own ideas of how it should be done 45:44 and I just kept saying no to God 45:45 but finally I did it, the Lord blessed. 45:48 He took me on a path that I would not have chosen 45:50 but it actually prepared me for what I was about to do. 45:54 He called me to success, not failure, 45:57 if I just let Him have control. 45:59 What I've learned over the years is, 46:01 you know, when I was called to Michigan, 46:04 it was three times to go to Michigan 46:07 to do the literature work and I said no twice. 46:09 The third time I decided, 46:11 "Okay, Lord, I will check into this." 46:13 And when I went to 46:15 the publishing director's office, 46:16 I said, "I need a house before I leave, 46:19 a place for us to live." 46:20 If this is God's call, He'll provide a place. 46:23 Within four hours, I had a place to move to. 46:26 Then a year later I was called to Leadership in Illinois 46:28 in 1994. 46:30 In that call I knew in the heart of hearts 46:33 I had such peace about it, 46:35 this is exactly what God was calling me to. 46:36 All along I could see that He had a plan. 46:39 It got to the point now where this last district I was in, 46:43 we were there 10 years, 46:44 which for an Adventist pastor is a long term. 46:47 And there were things that had happened in times 46:50 where I thought, "Lord, is it time to go, 46:51 is it time to leave?" 46:53 And because I was getting to the point 46:55 where, yeah, I'm ready but He wasn't ready. 46:59 Another year, two years, three years went by. 47:02 And when it was time, 47:04 you know, you don't, you never wanna say, 47:06 "Yeah, I'll go, bye," you know, you wanna say, 47:08 "I'll pray about it." 47:09 And I did pray about it and I had total peace 47:12 and it was to come to this district. 47:14 And one of the thoughts, fleeting thoughts was, 47:17 "Lord, it's kind of crazy but it just... 47:21 do you really actually want me to be on 3ABN at all? 47:23 Is that part of Your plan?" 47:24 And here I sit. 47:26 And I've been saying, 47:28 I've been kind of digging my heels in the whole time 47:30 not wanting to go this direction 47:32 but I realized, "Lord, if it's you, 47:34 you're gonna give me peace." 47:36 I have learned over the years 47:37 that try to get in step with the will of God, 47:40 get all those other voices out, wait on Him. 47:44 It's really bad when you get behind Him 47:46 and when you get ahead of Him, you want to be in step. 47:49 And getting in step with God is, 47:52 I think it takes experience with Him and He's patient, 47:56 He works with us. 47:57 He'll develop that in us 48:00 so that we actually as Jesus says, 48:03 "He does nothing 48:05 that the Father has not revealed to Him," 48:07 His plans are laid out. 48:09 Amen. 48:10 God directs His path 48:11 and that's the goal I have in my life 48:13 that God directs my path. 48:14 You know, I think you hit on a very, wonderful point 48:18 and that is wait for peace. 48:20 Don't get ahead of God, don't get behind God, 48:23 just wait for the peace of God to empowering your heart, 48:27 to rule in your heart and then it's time. 48:29 Amen, and that was the same scripture 48:31 I was thinking of too, that's incredible. 48:34 As you were sharing, Pastor Tom, 48:35 we're glad that God brought you here. 48:37 And that's just a wonderful thing. 48:38 The scripture I was thinking of is Colossians 3:15, 48:41 "And let the peace of God rule in your hearts 48:46 to which also you were called in one body and be thankful." 48:49 Let the peace of God rule in your hearts. 48:51 I think when Greg and I were making the decision 48:54 should we move forward, should we get married, 48:57 that's one of those pivotal life decisions 49:00 and God had led and we had peace. 49:02 And then we came to an impasse like a time of difficulty. 49:07 And I believed one way about a certain thing 49:10 and He thought something else and for us it was, 49:13 I'm not talking scriptural or doctrine, 49:16 all this was just other stuff. 49:18 And he said, "Well, I don't think 49:21 this is going to work." 49:22 And so we had a long distance relationship 49:25 then I remember he said, 49:27 "Well, let's pray about it, Jilly, and see what God does." 49:31 So I went to bed in Massachusetts, 49:34 he was here in Illinois 49:35 and I remember praying and saying, 49:36 "God, well, I just don't see how I can, 49:39 and I surrendered, God, I don't want my will, 49:43 I want Your will in this situation." 49:46 And there were two issues, 49:48 so the one issue say the first issue 49:49 he changed my viewpoint entirely God did. 49:53 And after I was through praying, 49:55 I knew instantly Greg was right 49:57 and I needed to yield on this point. 50:00 But interestingly enough, on the other point I felt like, 50:03 "No, that was right and I still needed to hold to that." 50:06 Well, the next morning Greg called me 50:08 and he said, "Well, Jilly, I prayed and I have peace 50:12 over these issues and this is how I feel." 50:14 So the issue God had changed me on 50:16 Greg still held to and he felt firmly about. 50:19 But the issue where I was still holding firmly 50:22 Greg said, "Oh, God changed my mind on that." 50:24 And I view the other way around. 50:26 So to me we knew then when we had that assurance 50:31 and that peace that then you can move forward. 50:33 So I think any time we're facing those decisions 50:36 to know that if we are walking in step with Jesus, 50:40 in line with Him we have that peace 50:43 that comes from above. 50:45 Amen. Well said. 50:46 In Matthew 11 the Lord tells us that... 50:50 He hides some things from those who are wise 50:53 in their own sight and reveals them to children 50:56 which says to me that understanding the will of God 50:59 is not a matter of intellect or wisdom 51:01 or even acquired knowledge. 51:02 It's a matter of having childlike faith and trust 51:05 to do and accept whatever God shows you to do. 51:08 And Ellen White buttresses this by saying that, 51:11 "Our effectiveness in the world 51:12 is not a matter of us making a big noise," 51:14 and she used that term, a big noise. 51:16 "Our effectiveness and hearing the voice of God 51:19 and carrying out the will of God 51:21 is in direct proportion to our surrender 51:24 to the Holy Spirit." 51:25 So your mind has to be surrendered, 51:27 your heart has to be surrendered, 51:29 all that you are within has to be surrendered. 51:32 And if you want to hear the voice of God 51:34 and are willing to follow that voice when heard, 51:37 you will hear the voice of God 51:39 and the Lord will be more than pleased to direct your steps. 51:43 We're gonna go to our news break now, 51:44 then we'll come back, put a little bow on this 51:46 with some closing thoughts. |
Revised 2017-07-14