Participants: Shelley Quinn
Series Code: OTR
Program Code: OTR000809
|
01:00 Hello, and welcome to 3ABN Spring Camp Meeting.
01:04 This year our theme is the year of victory. 01:09 And thanks be to God 01:10 who gives us the victory in Christ Jesus. 01:12 Amen? 01:14 Amen. 01:15 Well, to kick this hour off, first of all, let me tell you, 01:17 I'll be your speaker this hour, 01:19 and we're going to be talking about 01:21 how to hear the still small voice of the Lord. 01:26 But to start our hour we want to invite out 01:29 Jennifer LaMountain. 01:30 She's going to be singing a beautiful song called, 01:32 "I Look to the Shepherd." 01:35 Jennifer, why don't you come on out here? 01:37 And you know, if you don't already know, 01:39 Jennifer is expecting her first baby. 01:42 And we're so excited for you and your husband. 01:44 Thank you so much. Have you named this child yet? 01:47 No, we were actually just having a discussion backstage 01:49 as to what we should name a little boy. 01:51 We have no idea yet so. 01:52 Hopefully we can figure it out soon. 01:55 Thank you. Amen. Thank you, Jennifer. 02:10 I look to the Shepherd 02:16 He meets all my needs 02:21 Beside the still waters 02:25 He faithfully leads 02:31 Bringing peace 02:34 To my soul 02:39 As His love 02:43 Makes me whole 02:48 Surely goodness and mercy 02:55 Shall follow me 03:00 Follow me 03:04 All the days of my life 03:12 And when in the valley 03:17 Of deepest despair 03:22 I look to the Shepherd 03:27 His presence is there 03:31 Bringing peace 03:36 To my soul 03:41 As His love 03:44 Makes me whole 03:49 Surely goodness and mercy 03:56 Shall follow me 04:00 Follow me 04:03 All the days of my life 04:08 Surely goodness and mercy 04:13 Shall follow me 04:18 And I shall dwell in the hearts 04:23 In the heart of the Lord 04:29 All my life. 04:44 Amen. 04:48 Thank you, Jennifer. 04:52 She asked me, we didn't have a chance 04:55 to coordinate the song with the message. 04:57 So she asked me backstage, 05:00 if this song would go with a message. 05:02 And I thought how perfectly 05:04 the Lord always work things together, 05:06 because we're going to be talking about 05:08 seeking His face, today. 05:11 And why don't we do that, actually, before we begin. 05:15 Loving Father God, we come this morning 05:19 to praise Your holy name. 05:21 We praise You for Your goodness. 05:25 We praise You for Your love. 05:26 We praise You for Your righteousness, 05:29 and Your patience with us, Father. 05:32 Lord, we praise You for Your power. 05:34 We praise You for Your plan. 05:36 Lord, we praise You for all You are. 05:39 And we thank You so much, Father, God, 05:42 that salvation is a gift. 05:45 We thank You for our Lord Jesus Christ, 05:48 we thank You for the Holy Spirit 05:49 and for Your Word. 05:51 And, Lord, right now, 05:52 I come before You in the name of Jesus, 05:55 to ask Father, 05:56 that You would empty me of me 05:59 and fill me with Your Holy Spirit. 06:01 Lord, please send Your Holy Spirit to be our teacher. 06:06 Father, please don't let me be out here by myself. 06:09 Because I know that there's nothing I can do 06:11 to minister to the people without You. 06:14 So I just lift myself up to You now 06:16 and ask that You would fill me. 06:19 And please, Lord, touch the hearts 06:22 and the ears of everyone who will hear this message. 06:25 And, Father, let it be something 06:28 that we don't just hear, 06:31 but that we put into practice. 06:33 We ask these things for the glory of Your name, 06:36 in Jesus name. 06:37 Amen. Amen. 06:39 Let me start off by asking you a question. 06:43 How many of you know that you know 06:47 that God has impressed His thoughts upon your mind 06:51 at some time? 06:52 Can I see your hands if you know? 06:55 Praise the Lord! 06:57 Now, all of these hands, nearly everyone's hand went up, 07:01 I have, from time to time been criticized, 07:06 because I will say something on the air 07:08 that the Lord said such and such to me. 07:12 So I'll get a letter every now and then 07:14 or I'll get a phone call or an email who will say, 07:17 "You can't say that God said something to you. 07:21 Do you think you're a prophet?" 07:23 And, you know, I have been teaching 07:26 what I'm going to teach you today. 07:28 I have been teaching since 1999. 07:32 I hope it's a two hour teaching. 07:35 We're going to try to condense this. 07:37 So we'll just be kind of going over the bullet points 07:40 on some parts. 07:41 But I want to focus today 07:44 on hearing the still small voice of the Lord. 07:49 And let me just tell you how this all came about. 07:52 It was a time in my life when I had walked with the Lord 07:57 for 18 months so closely 07:59 that I could feel His heartbeat. 08:02 Have you been there where you just know 08:04 that you really... 08:05 1 Corinthians 6:17 is real. 08:08 In 1 Corinthians 6:17 says that, 08:12 "Those who are in Christ 08:14 are one with Him in Spirit." 08:16 And I had been walking so closely with the Lord 08:19 for those 18 months that I felt one with Him. 08:23 One in purpose, thought and action, 08:25 I'm spending so much time in the word 08:28 and so much time in prayer and ministering. 08:30 But what happened was I had taken a consulting job 08:35 that was several hundred miles from our home, 08:37 spending a lot of time on the road. 08:40 And it got to where I was working for about, 08:44 after that one 18 month period for the next 18 month period. 08:48 I was working six and even seven days a week, 08:51 putting in 14 hour days. 08:54 Now, what do you think happened 08:57 with my walk with the Lord? 09:01 Yes, I was going backwards. 09:04 I was backsliding. 09:06 So at the end of that 18 month period, 09:08 I came to the Lord. 09:10 And I was crying out to Him earnestly. 09:14 And I said, "Father, 09:15 how is it that I can walk so closely to You 09:19 that I feel Your heartbeat?" 09:21 And then I can find myself in this backslidden condition. 09:25 And for two hours, 09:27 I earnestly was seeking the Lord 09:29 and saying, "Give me the answer to this problem. 09:34 How can I keep from backsliding again?" 09:38 And suddenly the still small voice of the Lord, 09:42 which I believe is the Holy Spirit, 09:44 impressing his thoughts upon our mind. 09:47 Suddenly, this is what I heard, 09:49 not an audible voice, but I heard it. 09:52 And He said, 09:54 "If you will come to me each morning, 09:57 and start your day off with an hour of prayer, 10:01 I promise you will never backslide again." 10:06 Now think about that for a moment. 10:08 If we spent the first hour of every day in prayer, 10:13 do you think that you could find yourself 10:14 in a backslidden condition? 10:17 Even if you backslid during the day, 10:19 the next morning if you got up 10:21 and spend an hour with the Lord in prayer, 10:24 could you stay in a backslidden condition? 10:28 You know, as soon as the Lord said that, 10:30 I knew He was right. 10:33 But I'm the kind of person 10:35 that's always reasoning with the Lord. 10:36 And I said, "But, Father, I know myself, 10:40 I can't make a vow to you that I will do this. 10:42 I know myself, I am not disciplined enough 10:45 to get up every morning. 10:47 And to make, you know, to make that promise 10:49 that I'll get up every morning 10:50 and spend that first hour in prayer." 10:53 And so as I'm reasoning with the Lord, 10:55 suddenly I heard myself say this to God. 10:59 I said, "Lord, in order for me to do this, 11:01 it would have to be You." 11:04 And I stopped midstream 'cause it was an epiphany, 11:09 a light bulb moment, 11:10 a Holy Spirit light bulb moment. 11:12 When I said that it's kind of 11:14 like the teenager say, "Well, duh! 11:17 Of course, it would have to be God." 11:20 Did you know that God's plan is for us 11:24 to totally depend upon Him, totally? 11:28 He says, and Jesus said in John 15:5, 11:31 "Apart from Me, you can do nothing." 11:34 Absolutely nothing. 11:36 So what happened is I said, 11:38 "Okay, Lord, let's do it together. 11:41 If You'll get me up in the morning, 11:43 let's do it together." 11:44 Let me just tell you briefly, the first morning, 11:47 I began praying at 8 o'clock, 11:49 and the Lord impressed me to journal my prayers. 11:53 Has anyone in here ever journal, 11:54 I don't mean just journal a prayer request, 11:57 but to journal your prayer 11:58 is to write out your prayer to God, 12:02 like you're writing a letter to Him. 12:04 You know, what we see in the Psalms 12:06 are David's prayer journal. 12:09 This is his prayer journal. And praise the Lord. 12:11 A lot of it was set to music later on. 12:14 But you know, I know if some of you, 12:17 if you thought you had to write out 12:18 your prayers every day to the Lord, 12:20 you would quit praying. 12:22 You don't have to write out your prayer to do this. 12:24 But I want to encourage everyone 12:27 to try it at least once. 12:29 You know why? 12:30 It increases your focus. 12:32 It increases the intimacy of your prayer, 12:35 because all of the distractions go away 12:38 when you're writing out your prayer. 12:40 Now what the Lord did, and I'm going to give you 12:42 just bullet points, 12:43 but here's what happened that first morning. 12:46 I'm seeking God and I'm saying now, 12:48 "Lord, teach me how to pray for an hour." 12:51 He began me with praise, is where we began the prayer. 12:57 The Bible says, "We enter His courts 12:59 with thanksgiving in our hearts. 13:02 We enter His gates 13:03 with thanksgiving in our hearts. 13:05 We enter His courts with praise." 13:08 And so I began my prayer with praise. 13:11 And I actually went to the Psalms, 13:13 and I took a couple of Psalms, read them. 13:15 And then I put them into my own words, 13:17 and I praise the Lord. 13:19 And then the next step from praise was repentance. 13:23 And if you think about entering His gates with thanksgiving, 13:26 entering His courts with praise, 13:28 what's in the outer court? 13:31 The altar for sacrifice. 13:34 So the second thing was repentance. 13:36 And I began to repent. 13:38 And the Lord took me through 13:40 an incredible season of repentance. 13:42 The next thing was affirmation, 13:45 getting into the Word, taking God's promises, 13:48 and praying them back to Him. 13:50 Then He led me into intercession. 13:54 And you know, something I believe 13:55 that intercessory prayer 13:57 is the greatest call to ministry that there is. 14:01 And I have a scripture for it. 14:03 Hebrews 7:25. 14:05 Hebrews 7:25 tells us that Jesus Christ, 14:09 our risen and exalted Savior 14:12 is sitting at the right hand of the throne of God, 14:15 interceding on our behalf, 14:18 and He is able to save to the uttermost. 14:21 So intercessory prayer is something that 14:24 we need to make a part of our daily prayer. 14:29 And then we went into supplication, 14:32 where it was really becoming that one-on-one, 14:35 me pleading with the Lord, 14:37 asking Him to help me totally surrender to Him, 14:41 asking Him for direction in my life. 14:44 Now just let's look at what this spell so far. 14:47 We began with praise, then there was repentance, 14:53 then there was affirmation, and intercession. 14:58 P for praise, R for repentance, A for affirmation, 15:02 I for intercession, S for supplication. 15:06 P-R-A-I-S, what are we missing? 15:12 E. 15:13 Let me tell you what happened. 15:14 I didn't even realize this is what was going on. 15:16 But being the type of personality I am, 15:18 I was labeling every section as I pray and say, 15:21 "Now, what's next Lord?" 15:23 Oh, after praise, repentance, I put repentance. 15:26 "Now what Lord?" Intercession. 15:28 "Now what?" Supplication. 15:29 And I didn't recognize this was going on 15:32 for a couple of weeks. 15:33 But what happened that first day 15:35 as I was praying, 15:37 and I wish I had time to teach you all of this. 15:39 But as I was praying that first day, 15:42 I looked up and I had put a little sticky thing, 15:45 sticky note over my computer, 15:46 because I was actually typing out 15:50 my prayer to the Lord. 15:51 And I put a little sticky note over my computer, 15:54 so that I couldn't see how much time had elapsed. 15:57 And I felt like, "Well, maybe I prayed 30-40 minutes." 16:00 But I felt like I was prayed up. 16:02 And so I thought, "Okay, I'm gonna look at the clock. 16:05 I wonder how long I prayed." 16:06 And I looked over at the clock. 16:09 It was 10:15. 16:11 I had prayed for 2 hours and 15 minutes. 16:14 And it seemed to go by and about, 16:16 I felt like I'd been spending 30 to 45 minutes there. 16:20 So I was so excited. 16:22 I thought, "Wow! 16:23 Lord, this has been such a wonderful experience!" 16:26 And I was getting ready to type out in Jesus name. 16:31 Amen. 16:32 When all of a sudden, 16:33 I heard the still small voice of the Lord. 16:37 And this is what he said, 16:39 "Be still and know that I am God." 16:45 And I thought, "Lord, what do you mean?" 16:49 He said, "Exalt Me, through listening." 16:53 So that's the E. 16:55 There's praise, repentance, affirmation, 16:57 intercession, supplication, 16:59 and exalting the Lord through listening. 17:03 You know what? 17:04 I have often said to people, as I'm teaching them this. 17:07 You know, I've been privileged to spend a lot of time 17:11 at the feet of the Lord. 17:13 And God has spoken to me. 17:16 But I'm nothing special. 17:19 There's nothing different in the way the Lord looks at me 17:22 or the way He looks at Laverne. 17:25 There's nothing special about me. 17:28 The reason I have heard from God is because 17:32 I learned to make prayer a two way communication. 17:36 Did you know God wants to speak with His children? 17:40 So let's look at this. 17:42 And we're going to, in the next 40 minutes, 17:44 this is going to be kind of a bulleted points here. 17:48 But I want to take you through and show you, 17:51 God wants to speak to you. 17:54 And more than just the occasional impression 17:57 of His thoughts upon your mind, 17:59 if you will make this your daily practice, 18:02 you will learn to tune in 18:04 and hear the still small voice of the Lord. 18:08 Now, let me say something. 18:09 I prayed like this every morning 18:13 for over seven years. 18:14 And in my prayer journal I've got, 18:17 there were times and it was, 18:18 I mean, I understand why people, 18:21 you know, if any time 18:22 somebody comes up to me and says, 18:24 "Well, the Lord said such and such to me," 18:26 what is the first thing if somebody comes 18:28 and tells you the Lord said something to you? 18:31 What are you going to do? 18:32 Check it out against the Word, 18:34 because God will never say anything 18:37 by His Spirit that does not line up 18:38 with His Word ever, ever. 18:41 And I know when I first began, you know, I would tell JD, 18:44 "Honey, the Lord said this, or the Lord said that." 18:47 You know, what would he say to me? 18:49 "Honey, please don't say that in public. 18:50 People are going to think you're crazy." 18:53 But God wants to speak to His people. 18:56 And I'm going to show you this. 18:58 In Psalms 99:5, 19:00 it says, "Exalt the Lord our God 19:04 and worship at His footstool. 19:07 He is holy." 19:09 We need to learn to press into the presence of the Lord, 19:13 beyond the outer gate, in and beyond the outer courts 19:18 into the holy place. 19:19 That's where the affirmation and intercession 19:22 and supplication came. 19:24 We need to learn to press in to the Holy of Holies, 19:29 and be at the feet of the Lord. 19:31 Psalm 105:4, says, 19:34 "Seek the Lord and His strength, 19:37 seek His face forevermore." 19:41 What does it mean to seek God's face? 19:45 It means to pray, to get to know God. 19:50 See, so many times when we pray, 19:53 we come in and we've got this laundry list 19:56 and we're asking God... 19:58 How many of you have a prayer request list? 20:01 You know, you keep your prayer list going. 20:02 And so we come in and we're praying for this 20:04 and this and it's a check off. 20:06 But we don't pray to get to know God. 20:10 I think that's why it's so important 20:12 to make the word part of your prayer time. 20:16 When you come to God in prayer, open it up. 20:20 Prayer is meant to be a two way communication. 20:23 And the number one way God speaks to us 20:26 is through His Word. 20:28 So let Him speak to you through the Word. 20:31 Get into His promises, pray them back to Him. 20:36 He says to us in Jeremiah 33:3, 20:40 "Call to me and I will answer you, 20:43 and show you great and mighty things, 20:47 which you do not know." 20:51 "Be still and know that I am God." 20:56 That's Psalm 46:10. 20:58 So let's take, I'm going to briefly 21:00 go over some bullet points here 21:02 'cause we don't have sufficient time. 21:04 I want to get to the point 21:05 where we're going to hone in 21:08 on hearing the still small voice. 21:10 But let's look at this first. 21:12 How does the Lord speak to us? 21:14 What's the number one way that God speaks to us? 21:18 Through His Word. 21:20 The Bible tells us in 2 Timothy 3:16-17, 21:24 that every one of these words are God breathed. 21:29 They are meant for our instruction, 21:31 for our correction. 21:33 They are meant to give us life. 21:36 1 Thessalonians 2:13, says, 21:38 "The Word of God effectually works 21:43 in those of us who believe." 21:46 So the Word is the number one way 21:49 He speaks to us. 21:50 He also spoke to us through His prophets, 21:54 and through Jesus Christ, didn't He? 21:57 Hebrews 1:1-2, says this, 22:01 "God who at various times and in various ways, 22:04 spoke in time past to the father's 22:07 by the prophets, has in these days 22:10 spoken to us by His Son, 22:12 whom He appointed heir of all things, 22:15 through whom He also made the worlds." 22:20 What's another way? 22:21 He speaks through the Word, He speaks through the prophets, 22:24 He speaks to us through Jesus, 22:26 He speaks to us through answered prayers. 22:30 Think of Hannah, Samuel's mother, 22:33 who is pouring her heart out wanting a child 22:35 and said she would dedicate him to the service of the Lord. 22:39 Think of Elijah, 22:40 when he poured the water out on up there on the mount 22:45 and the prophets of Baal were watching him 22:47 and he poured the water out on the sacrifice 22:49 and asked the Lord to send fire down from heaven. 22:52 When that fire came down, was that an answer to prayer? 22:55 Absolutely. 22:56 God was speaking through that. 22:59 He speaks to us through signs and circumstances. 23:04 We can think of Gideon. 23:06 And in Gideon, in Judges Chapter 6, 23:08 when Gideon did the fleece, putting the fleece out 23:12 and saying, "Okay, Lord, 23:14 if this is, you know, if the do is on the fleece, 23:17 not on the ground in the morning, 23:19 then I'll know that you're speaking to me 23:21 that this is really You." 23:23 He speaks to us through open doors. 23:26 Revelation 3:8, Jesus says, "I know your works. 23:30 See, I have set before you an open door 23:32 that no one can shut it." 23:34 So signs and circumstances, yes. 23:37 But I'm going to share with you in a little bit, 23:39 when I asked the Lord for a sign, 23:41 you know what he said to me? 23:43 "This time I will give you a sign." 23:46 What does that imply? 23:49 Don't be asking all the time. 23:51 Learn to know My voice. 23:53 You don't have to have a sign from Me all the time. 23:56 But you know, often I'll pray, 23:58 "Lord, if this isn't Your will shut the door. 24:02 You open doors, You shut, 24:03 You open doors that no man can close. 24:05 Close the door that no man can open 24:07 if this is not Your will." 24:09 He speaks to us through visions. 24:12 Think about John on the Isle of Patmos, 24:14 we have the whole Book of Revelation 24:16 because of that. 24:17 Ananias. 24:19 Do you remember in Acts Chapter 9, 24:21 little Ananias, who is a disciple of the Lord? 24:24 And God speaks to him in a vision and says, 24:27 "I want you to go to Saul of Tarsus, 24:30 and Ananias is saying, "Oh Lord, 24:32 he's that murderous one that's killing all the people 24:35 who believe in Jesus Christ." 24:37 But God spoke to him through a vision. 24:40 Also in Acts we find how he spoke to Cornelius. 24:43 Someone who was not even one of the elect, 24:48 if you will, a pagan. 24:51 He spoke to Cornelius in a vision and said, 24:53 "Send these men to Peter." 24:57 He speaks to us through dreams. 25:00 Think of Daniel, and the dreams that God spoke to him through. 25:04 Think of Jacob's ladder. 25:06 Think of Joseph, the husband of Mary. 25:10 He speaks to us 25:11 through the appearance of an angel. 25:13 He has in times past. 25:15 I don't hear about that too much anymore, do you? 25:18 I wonder why? 25:20 I think maybe because we've got the Holy Spirit 25:23 so active in us that we don't have to. 25:25 But we see that He appeared through an angel to Zacharias 25:29 to announce John the Baptist birth. 25:31 He appeared to Mary to tell her, 25:34 she was going to have the Son of God. 25:36 An angel appeared to the women at the tomb. 25:39 An angel spoke to Christ' disciples at His ascension. 25:43 So there's many places where He speaks through angels. 25:47 He speaks through an audible voice. 25:50 Now, let me ask you 25:52 what is the audible voice of the Lord like? 25:54 What does the scripture say? 25:56 It says, it was powerful! 25:59 It was majestic! 26:01 It was like, when the audible voice came, 26:04 it was like thunder. 26:06 It was like the sound of many rushing waters, 26:12 it says in Revelation. 26:14 So if He speaks through an audible voice, 26:18 every time you see this. 26:19 And what happened at Mount Sinai, 26:22 when He spoke through an audible voice? 26:25 Their knees were knocking, weren't they? 26:27 It was almost a frightening thing. 26:29 So given that, this is why I believe that 26:34 when the Bible tells us 26:36 that He speaks through the still small voice, 26:40 I believe that is the Holy Spirit 26:43 impressing His thoughts, God's thoughts upon our mind. 26:47 Turn in your Bibles to 1 Kings Chapter 19. 26:51 1 Kings Chapter 19. 26:53 And let's look at this. 26:55 Because I think it's important for people to see that God is, 27:01 the Spirit of God can still impress 27:03 God's thoughts upon our mind. 27:05 1 Kings 19-11 is where we'll begin. 27:10 And the Bible says, "Then He said," 27:13 and this is the Lord speaking, 27:15 "'Go out, and stand on the mountain 27:17 before the Lord.' 27:18 And behold, the Lord passed by, 27:22 and a great and strong wind tore into the mountains 27:25 and broke the rock in pieces before the Lord, 27:28 but the Lord was not in the wind, 27:30 and after the wind an earthquake, 27:33 but the Lord was not in the earthquake, 27:35 and after the earthquake a fire, 27:38 but the Lord was not in the fire, 27:40 and after the fire, a still small voice. 27:46 So it was when Elijah heard it, 27:49 that he wrapped his face in his mantle. 27:51 He went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. 27:55 Suddenly a voice came to him and said, 27:59 'What are you doing here, Elijah?'" 28:01 The still small voice, 28:04 God was in the still small voice. 28:08 The Bible tells us in Psalms 139:16-17. 28:13 And this is something I used to quote 28:14 as an affirmation back to the Lord. 28:17 He says, "Your eyes saw my unformed body 28:21 and all the days ordained for me 28:25 were written in your book before one of them came to be." 28:29 Now listen to this. 28:30 Psalm 139:17, 28:33 "How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! 28:38 How vast is the sum of them!" 28:41 Would you like to know the thoughts of God toward you? 28:45 If they become precious to you, 28:47 I believe that God can teach every one of us 28:51 to know His still small voice. 28:54 Now very quickly with whom does the Lord speak? 28:58 He speaks with His prophets. 29:00 We know that. 29:01 He also speaks to those 29:03 who are obedient to His will and His Word. 29:09 In Proverbs 3, well, first, let me give you this one. 29:13 Acts 5:32. 29:15 The Bible says that, 29:16 "He gives the Holy Spirit 29:19 to those who obey Him." 29:23 When we say, "Yes, Lord," and we step out in obedience, 29:29 the greater the obedience, 29:31 the greater the infilling of the Holy Spirit. 29:34 Who's the only one who had the spirit 29:36 without measure? 29:38 What does the Bible say? 29:41 Jesus had the spirit without measure. 29:44 Why do you think that is? 29:46 He walked in perfect obedience. 29:50 So the greater the obedience, 29:52 the greater the infilling of the Holy Spirit. 29:55 Proverbs 3:32 says, 29:58 "The Lord detest, a perverse man, 30:02 but He takes the upright into His confidence." 30:07 If you are upright, if you are walking 30:11 in God's right way of doing things, 30:14 He will take you into His confidence. 30:17 Now listen to this from Proverbs. 30:20 Whoops, that's the wrong one. 30:23 So, oh, I was going to read it to you, 30:25 that was NIV. 30:26 New King James says it this way, 30:28 from Proverbs 3:32, 30:30 "The perverse person is an abomination to the Lord. 30:34 But His secret counsel is with the upright." 30:40 Isaiah 50:4-5. 30:45 Isaiah says, "The Lord God has given Me 30:49 the tongue of a disciple, of one who is taught 30:53 that I should know how to speak a word to the weary in season. 30:58 He wakens Me morning by morning, 31:03 He wakens My ear to hear as a disciple, 31:08 as one who is taught. 31:10 The Lord God has opened My ear, 31:14 and I have not been rebellious or turned backward." 31:19 Has God opened your ear? 31:21 If he hasn't, we need to ask God to do this. 31:25 Because let me tell you something, 31:26 for seven years, I did this every day 31:30 until I got to 3ABN. 31:32 Isn't that a sad, that's a sad commentary. 31:35 You think I would need it more here than anywhere and I do. 31:40 But the point that I'm making is there are times 31:42 that I have not, I mean, 31:43 I just have to confess and be totally honest. 31:46 There are times that I am so much on overdrive. 31:48 I hit the floor running in the morning 31:50 and you don't stop till you drop. 31:52 And I pray all during the day. 31:55 But if I don't sit down 31:56 and have this type of prayer with the Lord, 31:59 where I am pressing into His presence, 32:02 guess what? 32:03 If I'm not still before the Lord, 32:06 I don't hear from God. 32:08 I have to get when I really need an answer from God. 32:11 I have to be still before the Lord. 32:15 He speaks to those, He is turning away from sin. 32:20 How did He speak to Balaam? 32:23 Through a donkey! 32:25 God will speak... How did He speak to Paul? 32:28 He spoke to Paul on the road to Damascus. 32:32 And He got his attention, didn't He? 32:35 He speaks to those 32:37 who is choosing for a special work, 32:40 like Moses or Abraham or Samuel or Paul and Barnabas. 32:44 1 Samuel 3:10. 32:46 Samuel thought, little Samuel is thinking that 32:49 Eli was calling him. 32:52 So this was a normal voice that he was hearing. 32:55 He's hearing, "Samuel, Samuel." 32:58 And finally, when Eli didn't hear the voice, 33:02 and Eli knew it was God. 33:04 He tells him, "You go back there. 33:06 And the next time God speaks to you, you answer." 33:08 In 1 Samuel 3:10. 33:10 He says, "The Lord came and stood there, 33:12 calling as at other times, 'Samuel! Samuel!' 33:16 Then Samuel said, 33:18 'Speak, for your servant is listening.'" 33:21 When's the last time you told the Lord, 33:24 "Lord, speak to me, for I am listening?" 33:27 He speaks to His sheep, 33:30 those who are following the great Shepherd. 33:33 John 10:27, 33:36 Jesus said, "My sheep know My voice, 33:39 and I know them and they follow Me." 33:42 He speaks to those who are earnestly seeking Him, 33:45 those who seek His face, those who are seeking glory 33:49 for His name, those who keep on asking, 33:53 keep on knocking, keep on seeking. 33:57 He tells us in Hebrews 11:6, "Without faith, 34:01 it is impossible to please Him." 34:04 Because we must believe that He exists 34:06 and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him. 34:12 If you're not hearing from God, maybe the problem is, 34:17 you're not earnest in seeking Him. 34:20 Does that make sense? 34:22 God rewards those who earnestly seek Him. 34:26 Jeremiah 29, I'm going to read this from the NIV, 34:30 verses 11 through 14. 34:32 He says, "'For I know the plans I have for you,' 34:36 declares the Lord, 34:37 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, 34:40 plans to give you a hope and a future.'" 34:45 But now listen, it goes on in verse 12. 34:48 And God says this, "Then you will call upon Me 34:53 and come and pray to Me." 34:56 When will we call upon God, earnestly? 35:01 When we recognize that He has a plan for our lives, 35:05 and it's better than the one we're living. 35:07 That's when we get earnest with our prayer. 35:10 And He says, "You will seek Me and you will find Me 35:13 when you seek Me with all of your heart." 35:16 So now, what does the Lord speak to us? 35:19 Turn in your Bibles please 35:21 to Proverbs 1:22. 35:25 Proverbs 1:22. 35:29 Now let me set this up. 35:32 This is wisdom speaking in Proverbs Chapter 1. 35:37 And who is wisdom? Why? 35:42 Have you ever noticed that most translations 35:45 capitalized wisdom in Proverbs? 35:48 Why? 35:50 Because 1 Corinthians 1:30 says, 35:52 "It is because of God that you are in Christ Jesus, 35:57 who has become for us, our wisdom from God, 36:03 our righteousness, our sanctification, 36:06 and our redemption." 36:08 Jesus Christ is our wisdom from God. 36:13 So when you're reading in the Proverbs 36:15 and its wisdom speaking, this is the voice of Jesus. 36:19 And now listen what He says, Proverbs 1:22, 36:22 "How long will use simple ones, love your simple ways? 36:29 How long will mockers delight in mockery, 36:33 and fools hate knowledge? 36:35 If you had responded to my rebuke, 36:39 I would have poured out my heart to you 36:43 and made my thoughts known to you." 36:47 Let me ask you a question. 36:49 How many of you pray that God will discipline you? 36:52 Let me see your hands. 36:54 Oh, we got a few brave souls, 36:56 and then we've got some snickers. 36:58 Sometimes when I asked this question, 36:59 you know what happens? 37:01 I'll hear a collective gasp. 37:02 'Cause I'll tell people, here's when I hear it. 37:04 I said, "I always ask God to discipline me," 37:07 and they just go, "Oh!" 37:09 If you're afraid to ask for God's discipline, 37:11 then you do not understand 37:13 your perfect, loving Heavenly Father, 37:17 because all fathers are going to discipline their children. 37:22 Discipline can be just a simple word of rebuke, 37:27 a simple word of correction. 37:29 And I'd rather be open for that little word of correction 37:33 than for the Lord to have to take greater measure. 37:35 Say, amen. 37:37 So if we will respond to His rebuke 37:42 and start walking uprightly, He says right here, 37:46 "I'll pour out My heart to you 37:48 and make My thoughts known to you." 37:50 Isaiah 48:17 says this, 37:55 "This is what the Lord says, 37:57 Your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, 38:01 'I am the Lord your God, 38:03 who teaches you what is best for you, 38:07 who directs you in the way you should go.'" 38:10 We get principles from the Word. 38:14 But there are times 38:16 when we are facing issues personally, 38:18 that we can't go to the Lord, in the Word 38:22 and find exactly what we should do. 38:25 We need to know God's timing. 38:27 Are we going to build a house, yes or no Lord? 38:30 When should we build this house, Father? 38:32 We need to know. 38:34 And so we need to learn 38:35 to take it to the Lord in prayer 38:37 and sit at His feet, sit at the footstool, 38:41 seeking His face and say, "Lord, You have promise me 38:45 that You would teach me what is best for me 38:47 and show me the way in which I should go. 38:50 So I need your direction here. 38:52 I need to hear the still small voice of the Lord." 38:56 Isaiah 46:10, God says, "I am the Lord 39:00 who makes known the end from the beginning." 39:04 Now, if you're in Isaiah, let's look at this one, 39:08 Isaiah 30:21. 39:12 He says, your teachers 39:13 will not hide themselves from you, 39:16 but your teacher will. 39:19 It says, "Your ears shall hear a word behind you saying, 39:24 'This is the way, walk in it.' 39:28 Whenever you turn to the right hand 39:30 or whenever you turn to the left." 39:34 If you will learn to seek God's face and say, 39:39 "Lord, give me ears to hear what the Spirit has to say." 39:43 He will direct you. 39:45 And if you start going off the path to the left, 39:48 you'll hear that gentle word of correction, 39:51 and you can correct your path. 39:54 God wants His children to hear Him. 39:57 Psalms 25:14, 40:02 "The Lord confides in those who fear Him. 40:07 He makes His covenant known to them." 40:11 You know, when God first was taking me 40:15 through this on that first day. 40:18 The Bible has so much to talk about what God speaks to us. 40:23 He speaks words of comfort, He speaks words of correction. 40:27 But I know for me, and I know for you, 40:31 it's a little bit, at first, 40:33 it was a little frightening to think 40:36 that I felt presumptuous to believe 40:39 that the God who created the universe 40:41 wanted to talk to Shelley Quinn. 40:45 But let me ask you, can you imagine a father 40:48 that doesn't want to talk to their child? 40:52 I believe with all of my heart, 40:55 that the reason the Lord wants to speak to us 40:59 is because He wants to keep us, 41:01 He wants to be personally involved 41:03 in the details of our life. 41:05 And if we will learn, 41:07 let me share my experience that morning, 41:09 as I began with praise, 41:11 and then I went into repentance. 41:14 There was a deep season of repentance, 41:17 then affirmations, taking from Scripture, 41:20 His promises, His word, praying it back to Him, 41:24 letting Him speak to me through the Word. 41:26 Then praying it back to Him knowing 41:28 that He says in Isaiah 55:11, 41:31 "My word shall not return to Me void, 41:34 but it shall accomplish every purpose 41:36 for which I sent it." 41:38 I knew as I was returning the word to the Lord, 41:41 that He was going to watch over His word to perform it, 41:44 as he says in Jeremiah 1:12. 41:47 And He took me through those affirmations 41:50 into intercession, into supplication, 41:54 where now it's where I'm praying and saying, 41:56 "Oh, Lord, teach me Your will, 42:00 lead me by Your good spirit, O Father. 42:03 I want to know Your will, Lord. 42:05 I want to know Your will for my life. 42:07 O Lord, help me to pick up my cross today 42:10 and to put to death and misdeeds of my flesh 42:12 by Your Holy Spirit. 42:14 Lord, fill me with Your Holy Spirit." 42:16 And now I'm really coming before Him with the issues. 42:20 And when the Lord... 42:21 When I looked up and saw 2 hours and 15 minutes 42:24 had gone by, I thought, 42:27 "Oh, Father, this is so wonderful." 42:29 And I'm getting ready to say, I pray all of these things 42:32 for the glory of Your name in Jesus' name, amen. 42:35 And suddenly, I hear, 42:38 "Be still and know that I am God." 42:42 I'm going to tell you that I struggled 42:46 for the next five minutes. 42:47 Because thoughts began to come into my mind and I'm going, 42:51 "Lord, is this me? 42:52 Or is this you?" 42:53 Is this me? Or is it you? 42:56 Have you ever thought maybe you're hearing something 42:59 from God and you don't know for sure if it is God? 43:03 And what we've got to do at that point in time, 43:05 you know what the Lord spoke to me? 43:08 He said, "I will teach you to quit interrupting 43:11 in the spiritual realm and the physical realm." 43:15 You know, it was so hard for me to be still. 43:20 But at that time, the Lord began, 43:24 and JD and I were just beginning 43:26 a new business. 43:28 Because remember, I told you for 18 months, 43:30 I've been doing a consulting job. 43:32 Well, this company that I was working 43:35 with went bankrupt. 43:37 But all the people that I had been going 43:39 around the United States training were CPAs 43:43 and they said, "Shelley, 43:45 if you and JD will put together a new business 43:48 and come and teach our business clients, 43:50 what you've been teaching us, 43:53 we will guarantee you 43:54 that you'll have at least 100 people," 43:56 and we had over 30 CPAs lined up saying, 43:59 "We'll have at least 100 of our business clients there 44:02 and you can charge them $1,000." 44:06 They said, "$800-$1,000 for a two day seminar." 44:13 You do the math. 44:14 If you've got 100 people at $1,000, 44:17 how much money is that? 44:19 $100,000 on a weekend. 44:22 So I had been working for six months, 44:25 pulling everything together. 44:26 We had incorporated. 44:27 I was getting ready. 44:29 You know, we were getting ready to kick off this new business. 44:32 And I had been working getting everything we had. 44:34 Bought the big screen, we had the projectors, 44:36 we had everything ready, 44:38 getting ready to go on the road. 44:40 When the Lord started teaching me to pray like this 44:43 and I knew the first day, 44:48 I knew God was calling me into full time ministry. 44:53 And so I prayed like this for several months. 44:57 And then actually, it's been six months 44:59 that I've been praying like this. 45:01 I happened to go visit JD, he was working out of town. 45:06 And I told JD and at this time, by this time, 45:10 God has convinced JD 45:13 that I am hearing the voice of the Lord. 45:16 We're driving down the road. 45:17 We weren't Adventist then. 45:19 It's a Saturday. We're driving down the road. 45:21 And JD says to me, "Honey, what is wrong with you? 45:24 You have been so focused on this business, 45:28 and now it seems like 45:30 you're not even interested in it." 45:31 He said, "What's wrong with you?" 45:33 And I said, "Well, no, I'm still interested." 45:36 Kind of that little whiny singsong voice 45:38 that women say when they're not real sincere. 45:40 Anyway, and so he said to me, he said, 45:44 "Honey, if you could be doing anything in the world 45:48 that you wanted to do, what would you be doing?" 45:50 And I said, "I would be teaching Christians, 45:53 having Christian seminars, teaching Christians 45:55 how to have a closer walk with the Lord." 45:59 And I said to him, "Honey, I know God is calling me 46:04 to full time ministry. 46:05 I just don't know if it's full time right now 46:10 or if maybe we could do, Impact Profit Solutions, 46:13 our new business, part time. 46:15 And you know, every other weekend 46:16 or just do that one weekend, and that, you know, 46:20 if we could make $100,000 in a weekend 46:22 that would fund the new ministry, right?" 46:25 And I said, "So I'm just not sure." 46:27 Now let me explain something. 46:30 I knew God was calling me to full time ministry. 46:33 The reason I wasn't sure is because 46:35 what the Spirit of the Lord impressed upon my mind 46:38 as I'm journaling my prayers, is it had to be JD's decision. 46:43 Does that sound like something God would say? 46:45 I think so. 46:47 We're to be one. 46:48 He is the head of the house, right? 46:50 So that I wasn't lying when I said I wasn't sure. 46:53 Because I knew God said it had to be his decision. 46:56 And I didn't think for a second 46:58 that JD was going to say, "Okay. 47:01 Forget about this business." 47:02 But guess what happened? 47:03 I said, I know He's calling me to full time ministry. 47:07 I'm just not sure if it's part time now 47:10 and full time later or full time now. 47:12 And JD said to me, "Honey, you do know?" 47:16 And I said, "Yes, I do. 47:19 God is calling me 47:20 to full time ministry right now." 47:23 Without blinking, without even turning his head, 47:26 he's driving down the road 47:27 without even turning his head toward me, 47:30 he said, "Who am I to argue with God?" 47:34 Glory to God for a godly man! 47:37 And we abandon that business like that. 47:41 Never gave it a second thought 47:43 and went into full time ministry. 47:45 But here's what's my response to him. 47:48 I said, "Oh, honey!" 47:50 Oh, I was so excited. 47:51 I said, "Listen, God said He would give us a sign." 47:55 Because I had prayed, and I said, 47:56 "Oh Lord, if we do," I was praying and saying, 47:59 "Lord, open up the opportunity to talk about this. 48:02 And, Lord, if we make this decision, 48:03 you've got to let us know 48:05 for sure this is the right decision 48:06 because we could use that money." 48:08 Oh, we could have done so many, many good things 48:10 for the kingdom of God with that money. 48:12 See, God knew if we got started out end up 48:14 in that backslidden condition 48:15 and forget about the call on my life. 48:18 But as soon as I said that, God said He gave us the sign, 48:21 JD said, "That's the problem with you Christians," 48:24 he was a Christian, but this is the way he said, 48:26 "That's the problem with you Christians, 48:28 you're always asking for a sign. 48:30 So if God doesn't give you a sign, 48:31 does that mean you haven't heard his voice?" 48:35 And I thought about that for a moment. 48:37 Wow! 48:39 I wasn't sure how to answer that. 48:40 The very next day, on a Sunday, 48:43 A religious broadcasting company 48:45 tracked us down. 48:47 They tracked us down by tracking my sister down, 48:50 and then she gave them JD cell number. 48:52 And they called and asked me to come 48:55 and do a program on their network. 48:59 Now, is that a sign within 24 hours? 49:02 Is that a sign? 49:04 When I got home the next day, I was sitting 49:09 and I was journaling my prayers. 49:11 And as I was praying, this is what the Lord said. 49:15 And it's hard for me to, 49:17 as many times as I've shared this, 49:19 it is still difficult for me to share this. 49:24 He said, "Always before you have put 49:28 your hand to the plow, and you have turned back, 49:32 but not this time, 49:34 for I will cup My hand over yours." 49:40 That was all He spoke to me that day. 49:45 I've got it in my prayer journal. 49:47 He didn't say anything more. 49:48 I'd prayed for three hours. 49:50 That was one simple sentence the Lord said. 49:53 But I want you to know that, 49:54 that one simple sentence carried us 49:58 over the next few years. 50:00 It carried us because there were 50:02 some difficult times. 50:03 There were some financially difficult times. 50:05 Because now instead of having two people 50:08 working for a living, 50:10 we had JD who's doing all the work, 50:12 I'm out doing a ministry that doesn't pay anything. 50:16 And he was having to support the ministry. 50:19 But God carried me through 50:21 because of that one simple sentence. 50:24 There were times when I felt like turning back, 50:27 but I thought, "No, Lord, 50:29 You have cupped your hand over mine." 50:32 God wants to speak to His children. 50:35 You know, there was a time 50:37 when the Lord was opening so many doors, 50:43 and then some doors seem to close, 50:44 and He told me He was closing the doors 50:46 because it was a ministry that was getting, 50:48 the one I was becoming associated with 50:50 was getting a little off track. 50:55 But it was a difficult time. 50:57 And yet, because God was, 50:59 I was still seeking the Lord's face 51:02 to know Him better, to listen for His voice, 51:05 God was speaking to me and He kept me going. 51:09 You know, He says to us in Psalm 91:15, 51:15 "He shall call upon me and I will answer him. 51:18 I will be with him in trouble. 51:20 I will deliver and honor Him." 51:23 God was delivering us and honoring us. 51:27 And here, you know, 51:29 there were so many things going on 51:30 and all of a sudden the Lord spoke to me one day and said, 51:35 "I will join you to one who is running fast after me." 51:41 And he said, "And JD will work shoulder-to-shoulder with you." 51:46 You know what? I knew that was God. 51:48 You know how I knew it was God? 51:51 'Cause I was kind of like, "Well, wait a minute, Lord, 51:53 I thought You were giving me a ministry." 51:56 Little bit of pride came up. 51:58 And I thought, "Lord, if You're going to join me," 52:01 and then I thought, "Okay, Lord, if that's Your plan, 52:03 then I will serve side by side with someone." 52:05 I believe that the one God join me to 52:08 was Danny Shelton and 3ABN. 52:11 But you know, the Lord has been so good 52:14 because God told me, 52:15 "Do not think that you can go out 52:17 and do what you did in the corporate world. 52:19 Don't use all of the fluff 52:22 that used in the corporate world." 52:24 He said, "I want you to speak from My Word." 52:27 I prayed and I asked, "Lord, what do You want me to teach? 52:31 What's important to You that I teach?" 52:34 And the Lord first told me, 52:36 "There's far too much focus on the gifts of the Spirit, 52:39 teach about the fruit of the Spirit." 52:42 And He told me to teach about His love. 52:44 He told me to always remind people 52:48 that you are not worthless, 52:51 you are worth nothing less than the price 52:53 that Jesus Christ paid for you with His own life blood. 52:59 And God began to lead me. 53:00 This is when the Lord called me to His feet. 53:03 And He said, "Forget what you think, 53:05 you know, come sit at My feet, and I will teach you." 53:09 This is how He brought me out of believing 53:12 that the commandments were nailed to the cross. 53:14 God took me through a deep study, 53:16 He showed me all of these things. 53:18 Oh, please, God wants us to know 53:23 that He wants us to hear His voice. 53:26 But what we've got to do? 53:28 Anytime someone comes to me and if they say, 53:30 "Well, the Lord says such and such," 53:33 I check it out according to the Word. 53:35 I had a lady come up to me one day 53:38 and she said, 53:41 "God has delivered me. 53:43 He's kept me free from that no good man I'm married to." 53:46 And I said, "Is your husband committing adultery?" 53:50 "No." 53:52 "Is he involved with pornography?" 53:54 "No." 53:55 "Is he abusing you?" "No." 53:56 And I said, "Honey, I don't know who you hearing. 53:59 It's either your own voice or it's the devil." 54:00 But I said, "It is not God, because God hates divorce. 54:04 So He's not just telling you, 54:06 He's going to cut you free from this." 54:07 He has to, anything He speaks has to line up 54:11 with the principles in this Word. 54:13 So, but the thing that I want to encourage you to do 54:17 is to learn how to press into God's presence. 54:22 See, the reason we don't hear very often 54:24 is because we rush into His presence, 54:27 and then we rush out. 54:28 There were times that God has spoken to me. 54:30 I heard His voice. Once I thought it was audible. 54:33 I was having some refreshment with a pastor and his wife, 54:37 and JD was there and they were talking about 54:40 this pastor's wife having a new baby and how... 54:44 It was six months before she let anyone stay 54:46 with this baby. 54:47 And he finally got her to agree 54:49 to let her mother come stay with the baby 54:52 while he took her out to dinner. 54:54 And he was so excited about this. 54:56 It was like a first date with his wife. 54:58 He said, "My wife has been restored to me." 55:01 And he took her out for dinner to this fancy restaurant 55:05 where the nice linen tablecloths 55:07 and they got the candlelight going 55:09 and the whole thing. 55:11 They go through their salad and their soup. 55:13 And just before the main course was served a baby off 55:18 in a distant room began crying. 55:20 And guess what happened? What do you think? 55:23 Well, women, you, anybody that's ever nourished. 55:25 You know what happened? 55:27 Her milk dropped. 55:29 Now I want to be sensitive in saying this. 55:31 Listen with sensitive ears. 55:33 So this pastor said, "Isn't it amazing 55:37 how God put this intuition into a woman!" 55:40 And as soon as he said that, 55:43 what I heard in my mind was this, 55:47 "My name is El Shaddai. 55:50 The mini breasted one, 55:51 just as I ordained it in the physical 55:54 so it is in the spiritual realm. 55:57 When I hear the cries of My children, 56:02 My nourishment," 56:03 He says, "I long," how He said? 56:05 He didn't say, my nourishment. 56:06 He said, "I long for them to come and draw on Me." 56:12 See, God wants us to learn how to seek His face. 56:16 He wants us to learn how to listen for His voice. 56:20 It's not a spooky thing. 56:23 If you feel like you don't know enough of the Word of God, 56:26 every time God, anytime that I journaled, 56:29 anything that I thought the Lord was saying to me, 56:31 I always went to the Word and I looked it up. 56:34 A lot of times God would tell me. 56:36 He'd say something and then He'd say, 56:38 "Look it up." 56:39 I want to encourage you to learn how to make prayer, 56:44 a two way communication. 56:45 And for all of you who are watching, 56:47 God loves you so much. 56:49 He sent His Son to die for you while you were yet a sinner. 56:53 How much more will He now do all things for us? 56:57 So I want to encourage you, 57:00 please learn how to seek God's face in prayer, 57:04 learn how to press into His presence, 57:07 learn how to sit at His feet, 57:11 and listen for His voice, 57:13 for the Lord is saying, 57:14 "Be still and know that I am God." |
Revised 2019-09-12