Church Directory

“Hear His Voice”

Pastor Bob Hepokoski, Staples Alliance Church

Every day we are targeted with thousands of messages. They come by means of billboards, radio ads, Facebook, Snapchat, face-to-face conversations, junk mail, text messages, phone calls, office memos and a dozen other mediums. The sheer volume of information that is streamed our way on a daily basis is very literally more than we are capable of processing. 

The only way to cope with the communication overload is by intentionally choosing to ignore a large percentage of those daily messages. So whether we realize it or not, out of necessity, we have learned to selectively ignore a majority of the of the communications that we receive. We all do it instinctively.

Tuning out unnecessary and low-priority messages is a valuable skill that we must employ. Imagine if you actually took time to read all your junk mail and spam. We choose to ignore them for our own sanity. The problem comes when we apply that selective-listening skill to the messages that should truly keep our attention. I know my own tendency to mistakenly tune out the voices that I should never ignore.  (You can ask my wife about that). The coping skill of ignoring the overflow of information should never be allowed to prevent us from hearing our spouse, our kids… or the words of God.

We are told in Hebrews 3:7-8 that the Holy Spirit says, “’Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts.’”
Those words of caution were written to a group of first century Christians who were drifting away from God, as a reminder to hold fast to faith and fellowship with the Lord. Some of them had tuned out the voice of God. And if they could tune out God, how much more must we be vigilant to not allow God’s voice to be lost amid the thousands of messages that compete for our attention every day.

What has God been trying to speak to you recently? Take time today to get alone in a quiet place and listen to God’s voice.