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Living Hope SDA Church

Christian Martin

4 Ways to Silence the Voice of God

Thank you so much, Melissa, for that message in song.

So as we open the word of God, we're gonna ask him to speak to us.

So would you bow your heads with me as we pray.

Father in heaven, how thankful we are, Lord, to be in a place where we can gather in your name and to seek you, not only as individuals, but as a body, to seek you with all our hearts.

And we pray Lord that you would now speak to us.

May we hear your voice, The voice of the Holy Spirit.

And we thank you Lord for answering this prayer in Jesus name.

Last week we heard a relevant and practical message from Pastor Chris Holland on how the voice of God can be heard.

It was noted that it can be heard in the scriptures, the voice of God can be heard through Jesus Christ, the voice of God can be heard through his prophets, The voice of God can be heard through his prophets.

The voice of God can be heard as we commune with him through prayer.

Today, however, we'll continue on the same subject, the same theme, but from a different perspective.

Today's message is entitled, 4 Ways to Silence the Voice of God.

A friend of mine asked, why would I want to know how to silence the voice of God?

Now I'm going to guess that somebody is asking the same question right about now.

The sobering reality is that many may be silencing the voice of God without even realizing it.

Hence the reason to know how it happens so that it doesn't happen in our relationship with Him.

So we have prayed, and now we pray that God would speak to our hearts.

Most people are constantly looking for friendship.

And it seems that just as many people are looking for someone to follow, social media provides that platform for somebody to have a voice.

After all, it's what human nature yearns for, to be seen and heard.

And believe me, You know this as much as I do, that several voices are being heard today.

In this time of social distancing, we want to interact.

Its daily participants jumped from 10 million to over 200 million in just 3 months.

While in our Facebook world, most of us have more friends than ever before.

Yet at the same time, We crave genuine friendship.

And it was disheartening, but not terribly surprising.

Since the 1980s, the number of close friends that Americans have has declined.

About 40 years ago, most people had about 3 to 4 confidants.

People outside of their family that they could and did confide in.

But now, in our day, right now, the average is down to about 1 or 2.

And about 25% of the survey respondents said that they had no 1 that they would consider a true friend.

And so how should we term or define friend?

Nowadays it's popularly defined as 1 of the strangers we have on Facebook.

White, prolific author in the 19th century, who once wrote this, prayer is the opening of the heart to God as to a friend.

Came across this British publication that once offered a price for the best definition of a friend.

A dictionary defines friend as a person, a person whom 1 knows and with whom 1 has a bond of mutual affection.

But among the thousands of responses to this event were the following.

Definitions were these, 1 who multiplies joys, divides grief, and whose honesty is never broken.

Another 1 said, a volume of sympathy bound in cloth.

Another 1 said, a watch that beats true for all time and never runs down.

But the winning definition, the winning, the 1 that topped them all said this, a friend is the 1 who comes in when the world, the whole world, has gone out.

For it was Jesus who once said, Behold, I stand at the door and knock.

If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in.

White describes God and this relationship, friendship we have with him.

In her little, in her classic little book, Steps to Christ, page 100, she wrote this, keep your wants, your joys, your sorrows, your cares, and your fears before God.

You cannot burden him, you cannot weary him.

Take to him everything that perplexes the mind.

There is no chapter in our experience too dark for him to read.

There is no perplexity too difficult for him to unravel.

No calamity can befall the least of his children.

No anxiety harass the soul, no joy cheer, no sincere prayer escapes the lips of which our Heavenly Father does not take immediate interest.

The relations between God and each soul are as distinct and full as though they were not another soul upon the earth.

You know that idea as though there were not another soul.

I don't know about you but it's hard for me to wrap my mind around that thought.

But here's 1 way I capture a picture of God's deep personal concern or desire for me and for you.

I think that moment is somewhat captured at the airport.

You see it's that particular moment when you step into the pickup area after going through customs and you arrive where anywhere between dozens to several hundreds of men, women, and children are there waiting patiently.

Their eyes are fixed on that entry point where arriving passengers come through.

Now when I come through, I notice the faces and I look and I see all types of faces.

I see faces of expressions of great anticipation, great excitement, utter expectancy.

And when I make eye contact with the 1 I know, where the 1 I know has been waiting for me, I know there's an instant bond in that very moment.

Because you found the 1 with whom you have a distinct relationship with.

And you walk away side by side while others wait and continue to wait for that 1 person that they long to see.

God also waits for your embrace as if there were not another soul upon earth to wait on.

His sense of urgency, his sense of anticipation, his pure excitement, his utter expectancy as if you were the only person he was waiting on.

So my question for you is this, Why don't we hear his voice more often?

If this is the intimacy that God offers to each 1 of us, an offer that is hard to resist.

A friendship with the God of the universe?

It's like We unfriended him or unfollowed him or something.

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4 Ways to Silence the Voice of God

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