If you do all the talking, how can you ever hear God’s voice?

A small plane was carrying passengers to an out of the way vacation spot. All of a sudden, the plane entered a cloud bank, where the pilot got sick and could no longer fly the plane.

The pilot then told the person in the co-pilot’s seat to take over. Sheer panic ensued. The new “pilot”, though extremely nervous, got on the mike only to be rebuked, “Who is this? Don’t you know anything about microphone etiquette and protocols?

“Nope, never flown a plane either.” The experienced pilot quickly caught on and got the local airport tower’s controller on the call. Once on, the controller simply said, “Listen to my voice. Do what I say. And we’ll get you on the ground safely.”  

As the flight continued, though, the new pilot started listening to and voicing his doubts. In a calm voice, the controller responded, “Just listen to my voice, mine only, and I’ll get you safely down.” He did and they did.

In this journey to allow God to change our lives, we will battle tremendous “head noise” or thoughts/voices that are contrary to the truths Jesus gives.

So, it is vital to do what Joshua did, “Think and ponder on God’s Word all the time – day and night – so you can be careful to follow what God says to do. When you do, you will be successful.” (Joshua 1:8 paraphrased)

The Father, the Son and the Spirit are One God, who always speak truth, and whose voice His children are to focus on, listen to and follow. Sometimes He will even speak directly to and give you specific instructions on what to do, just like that air traffic controller (Joshua 8:18; Acts 9:10-17).

The pilot didn’t see the controller. He only heard the controller’s voice. And as he followed the controller’s voice and instructions, he successfully landed the plane, even though he was “just” a passenger!

Are you open to hearing God’s voice, which will never contradict God’s written Word? Sometimes He will speak, if only we will be quiet to hear it, stay in the Word to recognize it and then faithfully follow it.

“When fear knocks. Send faith to answer.”

We love our vacation spot in Mammoth, CA. When it’s our turn to use the cabin, we can’t wait to get there and enjoy the peaceful atmosphere. Even though it’s a long and often times hot 6-hour drive, the joy of being there is real and tangible.

It was the same with the nation of Israel. First understand, the whole earth belongs to God. He can give it to whomever He wants for His purposes. And second, it wasn’t Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses or even Joshua who picked out their homeland. God and God alone did.

With this in mind, when it came time to enjoy the freedom God gave and the future He had for them, the Israelites didn’t want it! The joy of being rescued from slavery wasn’t big enough to overcome the challenges of the journey to take it.

Joshua had to encourage them to go for it when he said, “How long will you wait before you begin to take possession of the land that the LORD, the God of your fathers, has given you?” (Joshua 18:3)

Are we like many of the Israelites of that day, who, though freed from slavery, hesitate to walk into the freedoms God has for us?

Jesus set us free! (Gal. 5:1) The Father took out the major players – Satan and death – through Jesus’ death on the cross. Therefore, we don’t have to stay stuck where we are.

Because Jesus rose from the grave, we have a bright future, starting now. We can experience life’s cool breezes, wonderful serenity and nature’s quietness despite the chaos and heat going on around us.

The Spirit wants to encourage you. Don’t wait until tomorrow to enjoy what He is offering you today – peace, life, and joy. Despite what you are currently facing, choose to experience what those words actually mean, now, in this very moment.

“Our Heavenly Father has a thousand ways to provide for us of which we know none.” Ellen G. White

You only know what you know when you know it until your Father introduces something new.

This applied to the generation who left Egypt as slaves but were too young to be soldiers or counted. Thus, after a 40-year journey God speaks directly to them.  

They saw hail fall from the sky. They walked through the Red Sea with the awe of a child. They drank cool water from a rock and ate fresh bread picked up off the desert floor.

Then comes Deuteronomy 29:4. “To this day, the LORD has not given you a mind that understands or eyes that see or ears that hear.” The only new information God gave the younger crowd, none older than 59 and standing at the Jordan River, was that their clothes or sandals never wore out.

Why didn’t the LORD introduce more information sooner?

He, like the painter, sees the finished work of art in His mind’s eye. He then picks up the brush and chooses the colors and strokes to place on the canvass to produce said work of art. And in Israel’s case, it was 40 years between strokes.

Your Father knows exactly where you are and exactly what you need to know when you need to know it. So, don’t fret about what you didn’t know months, years or even decades ago. It’s a waste of time riding on that emotional roller coaster ride to nowhere.

Instead, rejoice in what the Lord is revealing to you now. Rejoice in the fact that your Father does indeed know best – when and how to use His paint brush in your life.

Therefore, choose to let Him to paint as He sees fit. He is the best Father you’ll every have!

“Salvation by feelings is no more possible than salvation by works.” Charles Spurgeon

Jesus had just given His disciples their marching orders/purpose. Matthew then ends his book with Jesus’ words, “I am with you always.”

These words apply to us today. No matter where we go or what we do, Jesus is with us. Let that sink in.

Experiencing another “growth” day? He is right there with you. He already knows the trials, temptations and failures you’ll face in living out “the good work” the Father created you to do through Him.

Those same hands that were pierced so all your sins/failures are covered, are the same hands that will lift you up when you fail. Why? He never leaves you!

This is not a license to do what we want to do. Falling on our face is never pain free. Our physical scars should remind of us of this truth.

Yes, Jesus might not be pleased with our decision making. But, His love for us is far greater than our ability to not follow Him in the moment.

So, get rid of the abandonment thought, “I’m not good enough!” True, you are not! But Jesus, who stands right next to you, gives you His goodness to continue to follow Him in the present.

Stand in the truth that He will always be there with you. He never left or will ever leave!

We have a God encounter every time we rejoice when life is not going well.

One person said, “There have been some heavy, heavy years. But I have learned that pain is not suffering but actually a call for me to look to my strength.”

Another put it this way, “There are days when a praise comes out easy. Days when it takes all the strength I got.”

There are times we don’t feel capable of praising God. There are days when we don’t feel worthy enough to even talk with Him, let alone rejoice in Him.

Yet, this is where faith enters. We don’t feel like it, but we ask the Spirit’s strength to keep rejoicing anyways. This is where God, at least in mind, feels our praise even more. He knows what we’ve done. He knows how we feel. And yet we are still praising Him for who He is, what He has done and He can do.

This is the meaning of Phil. 4:4-7. We are to rejoice in Him always. And don’t forget. Keep rejoicing. Why? He is with us. Now that our head is focused in the right direction – His – by faith, we are to drop our various concerns into His lap. This way we can experience His peace and strength to keep going in ways we never thought possible. As we do, our faith in Him increases!

Faith based rejoicing changes our focus from the challenge itself, causing even more pain/struggle, to the One who can get us through that challenge victoriously – God. This faith step not only increases our rejoicing, but our faith as well.

Remember, when life gets hard, rejoice even more, which may require a faith step on your part.