God Hear's us even when we don't hear Him.

Do you ever get the feeling as you pray and are talking to God that maybe He's not listening? Or Maybe Your prayers aren't being answered for a reason?

I'm here to tell you today God hear's us even when we don't hear Him. I've often struggled with listening. I would pray and pray and pray "Lord Please open my heart and ears that I may hear what you have to say to me."

There are so many distractions in our daily lives how do you know what comes from God and what doesn't? Let's examine what the bible says about this.

"My sheep recognise my voice. I know them, and they follow me." John 10:27

"The Holy Spirit, who the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and cause you to remember all that I have told you." John 14:26

You are one of His sheep and you can hear God's voice. You can be confident that you will hear God and recognise His voice if you belong to Him and follow His ways.

If you're praying to God my friend, you can believe with all your heart that God will answer and those answers will not be coming from ANY OTHER SOURCE. You MUST believe that. God isn't playing games and doesn't expect you to either.

You will have people second guess you and test your confidence in your relationship with God. Don't mess with those folks. Best advice I can give. People that create doubts for you aren't helping you - you can probably create enough doubts yourself without finding help!

 Conviction of the Holy Spirit

John 16:8 says that when the Holy Spirit comes, He will convict the world of sin, righteousness and judgement. In the same fashion, let's say you were about to say something really nasty to someone. You suddenly either feel a "pulling back" by the Holy Spirit to not say that nasty thing, or you sense the Lord tap you on the skull and say, "Son, that's not nice. Don't say that." The word "to convict" is also translated as "to reprove." We must be humble and accept God's reproof of our actions!

Being led by the Spirit.

Romas 8:14 says, "For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God." When you are in a constant state of loving intimacy with Jesus, and you not only allow Him to lead your life, but you are accutely sensitive to the Holy Spirit as how He desires to lead you, that places you in right relationship with the Lord, such that you are God's little son or daughter! The Holy Spirit may either allow you to sense His urging you in a particular direction, or may even speak to you audibly.

When reading the word, a scripture jumps out at you. In your Quiet Times before the Lord, have you ever found that - as you're reading from your Bible - a particular verse suddenly jumps out at you? There's an excitement, as you say, "Yes! That verse fits exactly my situation! That's my verse!" The Holy Spirit has a way of illuminating upon the Word and opening our eyes to understand its meaning much deeper than what we would understand as a result of an dry, academic theological head-knowledge study that has no application nor pertinence in your life or anyone else's nor has the power to tell a flea to go away? The more you take those scriptures the Lord reveals to you and hide it in your heart, the more God finds you trustworthy to give you more revelation!

The opening scripture in Acts 22:14 says, "And he said, The God of our fathers hath chosen thee, that thou shouldest know his will, and see that Just One, and shouldest hear the voice of his mouth." Religious people may argue, "That scripture was meant only for the Apostle Paul!" but we must really ask ourselves: did Paul ever exhalt himself in stature and rank above any of us? Rather, we've all been chosen. We've all been washed in the Blood of the Lamb! We've all been drawn unto God. We're all called to hear His voice, not just a select few.

In Revelation 2:15, Jesus tells the Church of Pergamos that He's displeased that some ascribe to the Doctrine of the Nicolatians, which He hates. Nicolas was a man in this era who taught that there needs to be a spiritual elite who does all your penance, sacraments, hears God for you, etc. But recall that Jesus is not seeking for a spiritual elite but that we all come to Him like little children, because if our hearts are not like that of a little child, we cannot enter into the Kingdom of heaven!

In John 10, Jesus said that we are His sheep, and His sheep know His Voice. But Psalms 95:7 warns us that if we do hear His voice, we must not harden our hearts like the people of Israel did in the Wilderness, where they tried and tempted God, and so that entire generation perished. It was the next generation - a generation after the heart of God that entered into the Promised Land.

Daniel 11:32 says, "... but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do [exploits]." God wants to work great exploits through our lives! The world may say one thing. Our circumstances may say another, and the Devil may indeed try to have his own way, but when we hear a Word from God, be it through the scriptures or right in our very ear (possibly a scripture we didn't even know was already in the Bible!) we can use that Word as judicial punishment against the words of darkness. Isaiah 54:17 says that no weapon formed against us shall prosper!

So how can we better hear the voice of God?

 Repent of all unconfessed sin, and ask God to heal you of all iniquity, all bents for sin. Ask the Lord to show you what attitudes and what behavioral patterns are unrepentant in your life that you need to change, especially if these are causing you not to hear His voice.

Be ever so willing to not only seek after His face and to hear His voice, but to be obedient. One elderly saint once told me in his own simple words: "I pray, then I obey!"

Be willing to receive God's instruction in any way, shape or form in which the Lord wants to present it. You may not necessarily like the message - especially if you don't like the messenger! Change your attitude if you are only willing to hear from God if He is to speak only a certain way, or answer with such an answer!

When in prayer, be in an attitude of waiting on God, not just calling out each item of your To-Do list to Him!

Love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. Rest in Him. Trust in His grace. You may not hear immediately (then again, sometimes you will). Sometimes you may wait on the Lord in your prayer time, read the Word, and then leave the house for the day. You might not have heard anything by then, but because you've faithfully sought the Lord that morning, you've developed your sensitivity in your spirit to hear God's voice. And in the midst of your circumstance, be it in class, or a situation on campus, or in the office, the Lord may speak to you or show you things highly pertinent to your situation!

Harnessing the Power of the past....

"I waited patiently for the LORD; He turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; He set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand." (Psalm 40:1-2, NIV)

Depression is America's number 1 health problem. We all have gone through times in our life where we just can't get out of bed in the morning. We dread it because of something that has happened in our lives that we haven't overcome.

For me my struggle with the past has been a challenge that still tries to cling to me. In 2003 My children were kidnapped by family members. Though I knew my children were not in danger, though I knew that God was keeping them safe the intense worrying and panic attacks that I faced in fear that I'd never see them again drove me to near insanity. In fact I was clinically diagnosed with depression and aniexity disorder. I was trying desperately anyway I could to cope with the pain. Struggling through life, begging my husband to grab our children back and run away. Eventually the Lord brought our children back to us and we were able to get out of that sittuation but, the past still haunted me.

This is only one sittuation where I struggled through depression. I could name countless struggles from my past. Malestation , Rape, drugs, alcohol , sexual imorality... They all haunted me for years.

So when I finally had my life as God intended. My Children safe in my arms, My husband on my side, My support system of my parents very close by I still had trouble facing the darkness of my past.

The simplest decisions sent me into a panic and the thought of facing crowds was overwhelming.  Many times, I walked to the front door of the church but couldn't go in. I felt guilty missing services but couldn't handle the sympathetic looks and questioning stares as I stood, weeping uncontrollably. I was paralyzed, imprisoned in a bottomless pit where loneliness and despair reigned, wreaking emotional havoc from their throne of darkness.

But God is good - providing a defense mechanism for those experiences that are beyond our ability to face. He gently tucks them away until we are ready. When we bury pain alive, it keeps popping up at unexpected moments. Pain must be dealt with and buried...dead.  Freedom from the pit of darkness demands a confrontation of our past, straining every experience through the truth that "all" things work together for our good. The will of God admits no defeat and penalizes no one. We can allow our past to defeat us or empower us. Harnessing the power of the past is a compelling weapon in the war against darkness.  

Read Romans 8:28. What good things has God brought out of the pain in your past? Is your faith stronger? Have you been able to encourage others who have experienced that same pain?

t seems that the greater God's plan for a person, the greater the brokenness. The life of the apostle Paul reflects both great power and great brokenness; yet, Paul never considered his personal circumstances as punishment. He consistently asserted that his sufferings were a direct result of service to Christ. "Just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ" (2 Corinthians 1:5).

The Purpose of Brokenness

In God's wisdom He realizes what it takes to keep us attuned to His direction. He then allows problems to occur that will break our will and keep us dependent on Him. "Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance" (James 1:2-3).

If you're going through a period of trials and testing, don't get discouraged. God is in control. If we are serving Him, nothing can befall us unless He allows it. It will rarely seem beneficial at the time, but if we believe God's Word, we must believe He will ultimately receive the glory. "We know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose" (Romans 8:28).

What then of my experience of brokenness -- those experiences of separateness, experiences of being rejected and hurt, experiences of evil, experiences of being sinned against and experiences of bondage which flow from these? As I reflect over my life I discover some areas that are so hard to look at that I wonder how can God love me through and through when I experience so much in myself that is unlovable?

 Each child is born into a world that is broken and into an environment in which something has gone wrong. However loving and caring one's environment was, inevitably the dysfunctions of the world and one's family affect one. Frequently we react to these dysfunctions by making matters worse. Often in ignorance and sometimes even in full consciousness we contribute to the brokenness from which we were trying to escape. All this in turn has left us hurt, rejected, resentful, and anxious.

Yet the overwhelming truth remains that God is love and loves each person in every aspect and detail of one's life. If one thing is clear from the gospels it is that Jesus came to bring good news of reconciliation and healing. In Jesus we see that God wants to heal us, that is, to help us deal with our brokenness -- by coming to accept what has been and by becoming freer with respect to its effects now in our life. We can do this by bringing together in our inner life the experience of brokenness and the experience of God's love. We are being called to let God's love into every nook and cranny of our heart.

Come to me all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28)

My hope for every believer  is that you understand that the storms in your life have no power to destroy you because God will always be bigger.  No matter how devastating it may seem, there is a purpose and plan for all that you must endure and he knows how to work it out for your good. 

He's still working on me to make me what I ought to be it took him just a week to make the mon and the stars the sun and the earth and jupiter and mars how loving and patient he must be cause he's still working on me.... How many of you out there is He still working on?

Wow I tell you He's constantly working on me. Sometimes I picture Jesus up there in heaven speaking to the angels laughing shaking his head saying "Oh No Alicia's doing something again lets get to work! Someone grab the hammer maybe we can knock some sense into her this time"

My God has the best sense of humor. He made me ...

I tell ya I don't know how God does it. He is so patient ... To put up with everything that I pull through the years He must have the Patience of well .... Himself.

I'm a big sinner. I have a great exuse though. .... I was born into it! Yes Yes ... bet ya thought I was gonna say the devil made me do it ... also a great exuse. Truth is we were all born into sin. Romans 3:23 says For all have sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God.

No one is perfect. We've all done something in our lives that we're not proud of.

In the bible Jesus tells a parable I'm sure you've all heard The Pharisee and the publican...

Luke 18:9-14 (Look it up)

The Pharisee gets up there to pray and boasts about all the great works he does for God. saying that he gives tithes and fasts twice a week , He talked about how he wasn't like other men are , he wasn't an extortioner, unjust, adulterer or even as the Publican... He Boasted all these things before God.

The Publican standing off by himself would not lift up so much as his eyes to heaven. But, he spoke quietly to God saying Be merciful to me a sinner!

... It's so important to be humble before God. I don't want to be a Pharisee!!! I want to be the Publican because God knew his heart. He saw that yes He was a sinner but, he came before the Lord and begged for Mercy and was granted that.

The Lord is so merciful , So just.

Yes He is still working on me. I know I'm a sinner I pray daily that he'll take those sins and crush them Because My God is capable of moving mountains He can change who we are! He can make the blind to see. He can make the deaf to hear. He creates miracles and they still happen!

So He is still working on me and He has a lot of patience because I'm not even close to done. I pray daily that I'm worthy enough to stand at his feet one day and beg to be let into heaven. The good news is I have faith that My God will grant me the forgiveness that I don't deserve. Because in asking for forgiveness in asking for him to change my heart in asking him to set me free and deliver me from the clutches of death .... I know that one day He will be done working on me and I know that I will see his face and I can't wait to fall down at His feet and worship Him.

I say this without judging because, only God knows your hearts ... Are you the Pharisee or the Publican?

I'll leave you with this thought ..... They will know we are Christians by our love.

It's time to wake up church. Jesus is coming soon. We don't know the day or the hour but, I think its about time that we start to wake up and plan on it.

We know for a fact that he is coming again. Will you be ready?

Turn with me to 1st thessalonians 13-17

Are you awake yet?

I used to sit in a pew and listen to a preacher talk for 2 hours on something from the book of numbers one of those sermons where you glance down at your

watch every 2 minutes wondering when its going to be over. You get the whole sway back and forth and back and forth telling yourself quietly don't fall asleep

don't fall asleep Lord help me stay awake through this ... I think I've snored in church before .. You know why? Because I was asleep.

My mom would shake my arm and wake me up.

You see we as Christians are supposed to be awake. We're supposed to be ready at any time of the day or night. Are you ready?

I was a luke warm christian for a long time. Stuck in my comfort zone. We all have them I like to call this box my comfort zone, I was scared to tell non believers

I was afraid of what they might think. "They're judging me eeek!" but, that's just the enemy. You know why church?

He doesn't want you to lead others to Christ. No he wants you to stay right there in your box.

I tell you I bet there are some of you here who have sat in the same seat for years. They have those at every church. Here's your challenge...

Stand up right now and switch seats everyone in the church... Move up one pew. Come on step out of that comfort zone.

There was this one lady that was told to step out of her comfort zone get out of the pew she normally sat in and she straight up refused. When asked why she

insisted on sitting in that pew She said It's my seat. The preacher that asked her to switch seats said "It doesn't have your name on it" That sweet little

old ladie pulled a pocket knife out of her purse and carved her name in the seat she said "It does now"

We can continue to be luke warm and live our lives in a state of sleep or WE CAN JUMP UP STEP OUT OF Our comfort zones and Get on Fire for Jesus!

The bible says in Matthew 28 18-20 Go out and preach the gospel!!! It's time church are you awake yet?

I've been to a lot of churches where if you raised your hand people would look at you sideways and think you were crazy. Well there's a singer you may know

by the name of carmen. He used to say " When I was in school if you knew the answer you'd raise your hands, How many know who the answer is tonight"

We have to get radical for Jesus. We have to be ready to lead others to him.

The judging can't be there. Because in romans 3:23 the bible clearly states that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.

I'm the biggest sinner of them all. I freely admit that. I had pre marital sex when I was younger with a lot of men. I was doing drugs and drinking daily.

I got pregnant 2 times before I got married to my wonderful husband. But you know what... I have been set free by the blood of the lamb! By JESUS Christ who

had completely delivered me from all evil! I am free! I am free PRaise God! Because my redeemer lives and has brought me out of captivity.

We can't judge others though. I don't know your sittuation. I don't know how my words or judgement will effect you. I don't care if you drink alcohol, or smoke ciggerettes after church

I don't care if you let a cuss word come out of your mouth every now and then. That doesn't mean a thing to me... What I care about is your soul.

Are you right with Christ? Have you asked him for forgiveness? Have you asked for help with deliverence?

I'm not better then you. I like my comfort zone too. I still sin. But I repent I repent to Jesus. He is the only one that knows my heart and he is the

only one that knows yours.

They will know we are Christians by our love .. If you believe that tonight say Amen...

We have to be ready to show Christs love to everyone. We have to be ready to let the holy spirit take control of our lives. We have to be ready because My Lord is coming soon

Are you awake yet church? Are you ready to get on fire?