A Shift
Scripture Reading - Genesis 21:10-12 KJV
10 Wherefore she said unto Abraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac.
11 And the thing was very grievous in Abraham's sight because of his son.
12 And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called.
We (ihlcc) are excited to share with you an older truth that more recently was expounded unto us. The subject is on hearing the voice of the Lord. Hearing God’s Voice was never meant to be difficult because Jesus came to us personally to show us the will of our Heavenly Father. God always desired intimate fellowship with us and His Words of Life are designed to give us a better more abundant life. Of course we (ihlcc) do believe that God’s Word found in the Holy Bible is God speaking directly to us and the Voice of God will never contradict the Word of God. However, we will also acknowledge that God is not limited by only speaking the scriptures to us. In fact, in our experiences with our Father God and His Precious Son Jesus Christ we have found them to be quite practical. When we say practical we are saying that God usually doesn’t speak so far over our head that we can’t understand Him in our heart. No, the Lord God speaks very plainly such that you know in your heart exactly what He is talking about and you also know His Wisdom on what to do in comparison to just good reasoning that might or might not help the situation. The message we are attempting to expose in this teaching is that God will often use people near you to speak to you. Now with that being said not all the people close to you will speak a word from God to you but some will. You must know the difference. It is upon us to shift and see when something resonates in our heart. We notice in today’s scriptures that Abraham, the child of God and a man of God, heard something from his wife that was contrary to his heart (opposite of his will and seemingly unreasonable from his perspective). For sure, no one wants to kick their own son and the mother of his son out of their home unless they both are causing huge problems. Sarah was able to pick-up on the division in the Abraham estate so she quickly exercised her rights to speak unto Abraham (the head of the house) to remove this cause of strife from her (their) midst. Now this is a point we wish the whole Body of Christ knew, “God uses ordinary people to speak forth His Will but you must listen openly and patiently to discern exactly who is speaking.” We have found that all those who practice praying to God regularly typically have a good relationship with The Lord that fosters fellowship between them and God, their Creator, their Heavenly Father and Lord Jesus Christ. This is critical because like in today’s scripture you may not want to hear it if it is contrary to your will or understanding but it is still God’s Word unto you none-the-less. The reason we call a specific word from God coming through another individual “a shift” is because most generally conversations you have with a family member or close friend start out very general but when the Lord has something special for the listener the conversation “shifts” from more natural to more spiritual. Yes, we have experienced plenty of times when our daughters or our spouse has spoken a Word of God (a Word from God) to us without even realizing it. They just speak forth what is on their heart while the receiver who is sensitive to God, receives that word and places it into their heart. This Word from God spoken to the listener is typically edifying, exhorting or comforting but it doesn’t have to be. We saw in today’s scripture that the Word of the Lord spoken first by Sarah was quite troublesome (grievous) to Abraham but Abraham in his personal time with God found out that her words were God’s Word. Notice the Lord put some attention back on Sarah by saying in verse 12, “in all that Sarah hath (previously) said unto thee, hearken unto her voice;” The Lord was basically saying, “Abraham, don’t be upset with Sarah, your wife, because her words are My Words for you concerning a specific situation at this time in your life. Abraham made the common mistake we all make by looking at the vessel speaking to us as common (my wife or just a man) instead of a holy vessel from God (a gift). Yes, the Lord can use whosoever He chooses but do we always know when God is speaking, not just mere man? The correct answer is, “No” but we can learn more about how to recognize God’s Voice if we start looking for “a shifts or multiple shifts” in the general conversations we have with others. For example in one case recently Angela said, “if people would just stay in their own lane and only do what they are good at things would go a lot smoother in this earth.” Now she had no idea on the receiving end that I just heard from God but I knew that those specific words were very clear to me and I was out of my lane. However I instantly knew that God, either My Father or My Lord Jesus, was speaking to me directly about a problem situation in my life. Her voice was the voice I needed to hearken to because it was the wisdom of God and the exact solution to my problem. Moreover, upon my obedience to those words the problem was solved, thus it was overcome by willingness and obedience. This brought peace and confirmation because she “shifted” into a God Inspired zone that only those who are sensitive to God can go. We must be willing to openly acknowledge that God can use anyone in our life to speak to us if He chooses to do that. Those who have ears to hear will (shall) hear according to Matthew 11:15 We do not endorse walking up to people and asking them if they have a word for you. Nor, do we think it smart to expect an inspired word all the time from people around you. No what we are talking about is just doing your normal fellowship with God and people then in certain conversations you notice that God is speaking something specifically for you (or unto you). We are not saying this word from God has to be deep and profound, no not at all, we are saying it could be deep but in most cases it will be something practical that is easily understood and can be applied in your life if you are willing to listen and do it (obey the Word spoken to you). Yes, always be open to God by cooperating with His People because they too have the Holy Spirit of God within them. Although these words of God from other people may be random when they do happen they are always timely and beneficial for the road that lies ahead. So be encouraged dear faith friend that God will use ordinary people around you (those in your sphere of influence) to speak to your heart. Sometimes it could be a fresh word more recently received by revelation or it could be something in your heart that you already knew where the specific word spoken unto you was more confirmation then correction or instruction. Please remember don’t ever purpose to be led by words, dreams, visions, etc… from others but do realize that Words from your Heavenly Father may be spoken unto you by one of God’s family members and we (ihlcc) know God can even use unbelievers that speak from their heart to bless you with His Word for you if He (The Lord) wills to. Although a divine word of God coming from an unbeliever is not common it is still permissible under God’s Will if He (The Lord) chooses to do it that way. Remember, in John 11:49-21 the unbelieving High Priest Caiaphas prophesied about the future of Jesus in line with God’s Will. We can recall in one case where God even spoke through a donkey to enlighten the man riding upon the donkey in Numbers 22:22-34, praise God for His Willingness to communicate with man. So be encouraged dear child of God that the Lord can and will use whosoever to communicate with you according to His Voiced Will for your life, your Pastor included just be aware of “A Shift” when it happens. Understand that when the rate of flow changes and/or the voice and tone changes too you may be encountering “a shift” of (toward) God in Jesus Name please receive the Word of God by hearkening unto His Voice. Amen!