Welcome “Made to Crave” webcast friends! I pray God encouraged you tonight through Lysa’s message, Dr. Chilton’s nuggets of eating and exercise wisdom, or something JJ and I shared about our “cravings” that are drawing us closer to God and each other. If you missed the webcast, you can watch it Tuesday at 12, 3, 8 and 10pm EST here.
Today, I’m continuing my mini-series on listening to God and discerning His voice. Tuesday JJ and I will be taking questions and then Wednesday we’ll be sharing more about journey ing together through Made to Crave.
Years ago, my friend Melissa learned a powerful lesson about discerning God’s voice. It happened on the soccer field one afternoon. Melissa’s son Hayden was really good at playing offense on his soccer team, and loved to score goals. But, although he was good at scoring goals, his coach recognized that Hayden was even better at defending the goal.
It was the last game of the season, and Hayden’s coach had decided to put him on defense for the majority of the game. As the game came down to the final minutes the score was very close. Every one was excited, and many of the parents became a little vocal, to say the least.
At this point Melissa noticed the coach was shouting to Hayden “Back up and play your position.” While another adult yelled, “Kick the ball and follow through!” Then another said, “Come on, number 9, chase the ball, go for the goal, move up, go right, you can get it.”
The coach, beginning to get impatient, said “Come on, Hayden, listen to me.”
Melissa noticed a look of extreme frustration on Hayden’s face, and she knew something was wrong. When the game ended, Melissa called Hayden over to the side and asked him what was wrong. He simply replied, “I couldn’t make up my mind who to listen to. I couldn’t tell which one was the coach’s voice.”
This is one of our biggest struggles in discerning God’s voice. We are bombarded by voices all day. Some are audible voices, but others are non-stop choices and unending noises. Decisions and concerns. Discouragement and doubt. Desires and dreams.
If we want to hear God speak, we have to slow down, look God in the face and become so familiar with His voice that we can recognize it in a crowd…a crowd of thoughts. A crowd of emotions. A crowd of confusion. A crowd of great options and big decisions.
That is what Hayden would have had to do to determine which one was his coach’s voice. Are you willing to do that?
Are you willing to spend time with Him, reading, talking, listening and letting Him whisper to your heart? Are you willing to turn off your computer, radio or t.v. and give some of your undivided attention to Him so He can give His undevided attention to you? Are you willing to let Him replace your thoughts with His by just being still and writing down what you sense He’s whispering to your soul?
When you do, you’ll become familiar with His heart. You’ll begin to know His character and concerns. And you will learn to recognize His voice over all the others. But it will take time.
Sweet friends, there are no short-cuts to the deepest desires of our hearts. We long to hear God and He longs to speak to us.
All of us have different things that draw us closer to Jesus, and there are two practical things that help me: reading through the gospel of John very slowly each year and watching the Gospel of John movie on DVD. The movie was in theaters a few years ago and it was breath-taking. It makes Jesus, His words, the people and the stories He lived in come to life in a powerful way. Now, after watching it, when I read my Bible I can see Him and hear Him. Which makes me want to spend more and more time with Him, which helps me know Him and recognize His voice more clearly.
So, what is one thing you will do this week to become more sensitive to and familiar with your Coach’s voice so you can recognize it in the crowd?
Let me know your plans, thoughts or questions, and I’ll enter ou into my give away that includes a copy of the Gospel of John movie on DVD.
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The winner of last week’s give-away for Lysa TerKeurst’s book
What Happens When Women Say Yes to God is MARY.
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When I keep getting the nudge in my mind to do something I know it is God's voice.
Awesome to see and be encouraged by you and your husband on the Made to Crave webcast this week.
My one-word prayer this year is RECEIVE … to receive the love and wisdom God has for me and share it with others. To do this I know I must spend time in His word and 'get quiet and listen'. My lack of discipline, and spending way too much time on the computer have kept me from receiving His love that I crave. So I am going to turn off my computer for the next 3 days ….. and listen for God. I needed this encouragement to make some changes. Thank you Renee!
Sharon Telfer [email protected]
One thing that I've been trying to do on a daily basis is: as I get up from bed every morning, I literally ROLL out to the side of my bed and kneel. I surrender to God, and I make my body surrender as well. I forget to do this simple act sometimes, but it is becoming easier as I do it each day and it is so powerful! This puts me in a position of surrendering and listening to my coach (I loved your example with your own son!).
My next goal is to start with your suggestion of reading the gospel of John. Thanks for the idea and for everyone's insights!
I want to be so filled with the Truth that there is no room for the lies. The times in my life that I have sinned are because I listened to the lie (given by the world, a friend, myself…); trying to meet a need that only God could fill. I want to be able to direct my family, friends, and others toward God's Truth so they too can be set free. Thank you, God for the time I have had recently to sit at your feet to listen and learn. Thank-you for women like Renee and Lysa and the Proverbs 31 team to share your Truth!
Fasting from facebook is something I decided to do yesterday, so I will spend that time to settle my mind and listen closer to God's voice. It was so cool today when I heard you say what you did on the Made to Crave live web. Thanks so much.
I am going to post verses about my identity on my bathroom mirror.
i see people who know god and have such a beatiful realtionship with him i want to hear him!!!!!!!!!!!!
i want to know that no matter what i will have gods love and if i want more i need to do some of the work myself. I just hate starting cause i feel i will fail. please enter me in you contest i'm not familar with this DVD.
[email protected]
"So, what is one thing you will do this week to become more sensitive to and familiar with your Coach's voice so you can recognize it in the crowd?"
This week I will fast off unecessary TV.
Back in Jesus' day people weren't sitting alone reading a bible with the kids watching TV in the background. Instead they were listening to Jesus. The bible wasn't even written then so it was very important for them to pay attention to Jesus. They were unclean and the only way to God was through Jesus who was clean.
I have no problem with Bible study and devotions and I pray without ceasing all day long, BUT my challenge is to BE STILL and LISTEN and pray (comprehensively) while communing with God intimately.
I have been struggling for years with this. In the past I know I was closest to God when I journaled & read almost everyday. I have strayed from this over the last several years. But I am happy to say that yesterday was the 16th day in a row of journaling & reading my Bible and I praise God everyday for making this happen. I now find myself craving God instead of TV after my young kids go to bed at 830pm. Thank You God!!!
It is easy to know it is God because all the distractions around me are no more when God speaks so I know if I am deliberating ignoring him and can't honestly say I didn't hear him. Sometimes I don't like what God is telling me but I know that it is for my best even tho I don't realize it at the moment. I know if I do it my way I am going to take the proverbial 40 year vacation in the wilderness where all I really wanted was a day at Disney. It was great, I ate all I wanted, laughed, had a great time. Now I am tired, belly hurts and I want to go home. But God says no because I didn't obey so now I get the lessons from the consequences.
GREAT post – and just what I need to hear. I too feel like Hayden did – just don't know which voice to listen to. I like your suggestions of reading John and watching the DVD (I seem to get things deeper into my heart when I have a visual image to cling to). I enjoyed listening to you and JJ on the Made to Crave webcast – thanks for sharing your heart with us!
Maureen F
Magnolia, TX
I need to get quiet, turn off all distractions.
[email protected]
I often get the voices confused. But sometimes I know God is almost yelling at me, "Do this, not that." Often THAT is what I want to be doing and I just flat out wrestle with God over it. My goal is to just trust and obey. No more excuses. Just do what God asks and rest in Him when it's hard.
I came to read your blog today because I heard you on Made to Crave last night. I wanted to come and read your post for today (Tuesday) but got surprised when it wasn't there. I did, however, read your post from last night and I can tell you it was no accident that I read it.
I just told Lysa the other day that I had finally heard from the Lord on what my one word prayer for this year should be. Would you like to guess what it is? Yep, that's right – LISTEN!
And what have I done about it? Right again – not really anything! Yes, I have my 'quiet' time in the mornings but I don't really spend time LISTENING for His voice like I should. I felt God speak to me while I was reading your post – asking me why I haven't done this yet, if I say that my prayer this year is to learn to listen?
If this was meant for no one else, it was meant for me. No, He wasn't judging me but He WAS chastising (or scolding – whatever ya want to call it) me because I've not done what I said I would do. The same way I would scold my child when she was younger. He did it because He loves me.
Thank You for allowing Him to use you to speak to me.
It is so hard to try to hear God when I am constantly hearing all the things I have been told all my life that do not match up. How can you silence all the negative when you are reminded throughout your days. Then you read the Word or others speak of a loving God? Wish there was a way to block out all the mean that has trained me.
I need to be still so the "noise" of life doesn't crowd in and make it hard for me to discern His voice!
Thank you so much for this devotion!
I find it hard to hear God's voice so your blog spoke to me this morning. Thank you for the encouragement of taking the time to learn how to hear Him!
Renee, I enjoyed seeing you and JJ on the webcast last night! I can relate to your craving for connection (approval can be a struggle for me at times as well!) Actually about two months ago I was thinking of a friend I hadn't spoke with in awhile and in my mind I said, "I just want to hear her voice." Then God whispered, "I want you to hear my voice!!" He wants to speak to me, us, we need to expect it and make it the number one voice we want to hear!! Thanks for sharing your thoughts! I know for me staying in His Word and finding some quite time (a challenge, but so worthwhile!) is vital! I also believe the more we obey and actually listen rather than simply hear the more He will speak!! And the clearer it becomes! Thanks again, Jill
I am trying to read my Bible daily, following Wendy's blog..and I'm already behind! It is so hard to make time for my quiet time on a daily basis. I'm also doing MTC study and this is great.