Organizing the Inside – Day 275 Listening to the Voice of God

June 4, 2012 at 2:15 pm · Filed under Encouragement, Faith, Inspiration, Purpose, Wisdom, Women's Ministry and tagged: Christ, Listening, Obeying, Samuel, Surrendered Heart

3The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was sleeping in the Tabernacle near the Ark of God. 4Suddenly the Lord called out, “Samuel!” “Yes?” Samuel replied. “What is it?” 5He got up and ran to Eli. “Here I am. Did you call me?” “I didn’t call you,” Eli replied. “Go back to bed.” So he did. 6Then the Lord called out again, “Samuel!” Again Samuel got up and went to Eli. “Here I am. Did you call me?” “I didn’t call you, my son,” Eli said. “Go back to bed.” 7Samuel did not yet know the Lord because he had never had a message from the Lord before. 8So the Lord called a third time, and once more Samuel got up and went to Eli. “Here I am. Did you call me?”

Then Eli realized it was the Lord who was calling the boy. 9So he said to Samuel, “Go and lie down again, and if someone calls again, say, ‘Speak, Lord, your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went back to bed. 10And the Lord came and called as before, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel replied, “Speak, your servant is listening.” 1 Samuel 3:3-10 (NLT)

Which lane are you in today?
I always thought I was in the movers and shakers lane; ready to make things happen. In my futile attempts to hurry along God’s plan I kept asking, “Are we there yet? Are we there yet?” Why does it seem like things are taking so long?  Have you ever wondered why it seems like God is in no real hurry about what He’s working on? The work is life changing and very much-needed; so why then doesn’t God move any faster? I think He has to do things at a slower pace because of our free will. He won’t force us to respond quickly to His initial prompting. Most of us tend to cruise along in the slow lane.

Have you ever thought,
“God has been speaking to me about this for a few months now”?  What have you done about it? When God gives direction, He ends up having to take the slow lane, all the while telling us the same thing over and over again. Our reluctance, hesitance, resistance, avoidance, and plain disobedience slows down progress.

• Are you ever reluctant to trust God immediately and hand over your problem right away?
• Are you ever hesitant to step out on faith, when things seem a bit scary?
• Are you ever resistant to change, even when you knew it was His voice speaking to you?
• Have you ever avoided saying something you knew God told you to say?
• Have you ever pretended as though you didn’t hear God’s voice and kind of tried to forget?
• Have you ever used the excuse I need to pray about it to avoid making a decision?

I must admit yes, to all of the above at one time or another. Am I the first Christian to reprioritize God’s plan to a temporary back burner position? I once had the nerve to ask God if He was sure. Then I actually answered, not even thinking about what I was saying…I don’t think you’re sure. How silly! I tried to reason with God right up until the last few seconds, but the Holy Spirit gave me the boldness that was needed to follow through and finally do what He said. This was a huge lesson in obedience. I’m committed to not doubting God or His voice in my heart. My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. John 10:27 (NLT)

When things aren’t happening in our lives as quickly as we think they should, we ought to take a serious look at our response to God’s direction. Does God know He may as well start telling you to do something six months in advance, because that’s often how long it takes until you obey? ‘Their hearts always turn away from me. They refuse to do what I tell them.’  Psalm 95:10b (NLT) God is never going to impose His will on you or me, even if it’s what’s best for us. Trying to negotiate with the Lord shows a true lack of wisdom. By responding, “Hun, God is that you?” shows a lack of maturity. Samuel was very young and hadn’t learned to discern God’s voice yet.  Most of us may never hear an audible voice, or experience some huge event to prove what we already know. The big event will come, once we learn to give God our surrendered heart. If we want things to move along, we must first stop trying to blame God, because “we’re not there yet” and look at our willingness to say yes and OBEY Him the moment we hear His voice. Samuel jumped up out of bed immediately when He heard God’s voice, not even realizing it was Him. What was your response the last time you heard His voice, and you knew it was Him?

13You must warn each other every day, while it is still “today,” so that none of you will be deceived by sin and hardened against God. 14For if we are faithful to the end, trusting God just as firmly as when we first believed, we will share in all that belongs to Christ. 15Remember what it says: “Today when you hear his voice, don’t harden your hearts Hebrews 3:13-15a (NLT)

Permalink