<p>Free sharing permitted under the Creative Commons <a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/us/">BY-NC-ND 3.0 (US)</a> license.</p>

Advent HOPE Sabbath School

Adwoa Wiafe

God as our Shepherd

Thank you so much, Sarah, for that beautiful song and your friends.

The words of that song just really hit me so, so much.

It was so in line with the message and I felt like God was really speaking a blessing and saying I already prepared the way ahead for you.

So as we get started and The slides are getting up.

Dear Lord, I just thank you so much for this day.

I thank you for everybody in this room, everybody listening and watching online.

Lord, I ask for your spirit to rest in this place.

I ask that you hide me behind the cross, Lord, and that you are the 1 that speaks, that I am your instrument, Lord, and I pray that you continue making the way ahead, and that you open our eyes and our ears to be able to hear your message today and get a glimpse of the beauty of your character.

All right, so Advent Hope, I love that name.

I really like that name because it's a mirror of the past and it's also a promise of the future.

You know back way back then when humans were first created they chose to disobey God But that was not the ending of that story.

We know that Jesus was able to create a way for reconciliation and restoration.

Today's message is focused on God making a way for us.

We have the Advent hope as well, as we celebrate this season of Christmas.

That God already made a way for us, day by day, that we're walking on this journey as we stay connected to him, all the way to his advent, to his coming.

So 1 of my favorite stories during that time, it's about a group of people who were studying the scriptures and they came to the conclusion that the Messiah was on his way, that he was already here, and that they were able to be led by a star to the home of the dwelling place of the Messiah.

They were in search of the Savior and God was able to lead them to his place.

They are known as kings, also known as the Magi, also known as the wise men.

They are counted as wise, and I wonder why.

And that's the question I'd like us to ponder today.

They had direction, and I think that's a big reason why they are counted as wise.

I think we are called to be wise as well, that God can also give us direction to lead us home.

So I really like Proverbs because it really dives into this concept of wisdom.

I'm just going to read Proverbs chapter 2, verses 1 to 2.

Feel free to follow along in your Bibles.

I'm a person who loves colors, so I like to get out my highlighters and highlight right in the margins.

So if that's you, please go ahead and feel free to do so.

I'll give you a little bit of time as I'm hearing the pages turning.

Proverbs chapter 2 and we're gonna start in verse 1.

It says, My child, listen to what I say and treasure my commands.

Tune your ears to wisdom and concentrate on understanding.

For the Lord grants wisdom from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.

He grants a treasure of common sense to the honest.

He is a shield to those who walk with integrity.

He guards the paths of the just and protects those who are faithful to him.

Then you will understand what is right, just, and fair, and you will find the right way to go.

For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will fill you with joy.

And I want us to just kind of tease out these verses just a little bit, because I found so much treasure in this.

The first verse says, my child, God is addressing us as his children.

And It's not just by hearing, but God says to treasure it.

It means that it's so precious, that it's so applicable to your life.

You know, 1 of the things that I found so, I guess that really led me to fall in love with Jesus is that he was so receptive to my prayers.

And I knew that he was there because he would answer my prayers.

And so I was able to experience that as I was reading the Bible, that the Bible was able to come alive in my life.

I used to work as a nursing assistant in the maternity ward.

And so 1 day, I was reading the story of Joseph.

And in the story of Joseph, I remember reading where it was like, wow, like, wherever he went, people noticed that he was a man of God.

And I remember reading that and being like, wow, how amazing that, you know, people can recognize that this man was a man of God even by not really knowing him.

And I was like, wow, like, Lord, is that possible for in my life?

And I just kind of prayed that prayer and I didn't think much of it like later on that day.

But as I went to work, 2 patients were like, are you a Christian?

They're like, I don't know, your demeanor, your smile, just something about it.

Like the first time I was like, wow, that's amazing, Lord.

Then the second time I was like, all right, that's definitely God speaking there, answering my prayer.

And so I challenge you that as you are going through the scriptures, let it come alive in your life.

Verse 2, it says, Tune your ears to wisdom and concentrate on understanding.

To me that means almost like you gotta train your ear to recognize the voice of God when he speaks.

I'm someone who loves music, and that's a gift from God.

And 1 of the things I really like to do, especially songs that I really enjoy, is to pay attention to the individual parts of the song.

Like, listen to the cello, that deep sound that is so subtle, but when you pay attention to it, you realize that adds so much depth to that song.

Or maybe paying attention to the little parts of the song that just kind of add the flavor in.

At times, at first glance, we might just hear the entire song for what it is, but then when you're able to, like, pay attention to the details of it, there's so much appreciation to, like, how the intricate details can make a simple song yet have so much complexity in it.

And so it's similar to that, where we can learn how to train our ears to hear the voice of God and recognize it.

It's by spending more and more time in His way.

It's by spending more and more time with his people and recognizing what God sounds like to you.

From his mouth come knowledge and understanding.

Back to Menu

God as our Shepherd

Transcript

Sponsor

Recorded

Related

Restoration 2006: Prepare Me

Cardiology of Commitment: The Heart of the Matter

58m

Can You Keep Up

48m

Endurance of the Saints

28m

Admonitions for the Last Days

1. Admonitions for the Last Days

46m

Spiritual Athletes

56m

The Anchor Holds

52m

Simple Christianity

What Will We Do

57m

No Trial Wasted

39m

GoTential

Growing as a Disciple

42m

Preparing for the Latter Rain: The Judgment Hour Message

Defining Sin

1h 25m

Don’t Lose Heart

50m

Sound Doctrine