What Voice Leads You?

We are in a time of many voices competing for our attention. Statistics from many Christian sources say, "Less than 25% of Christians read their Bible 3-4 times a week and prior to the pandemic, Regular Church attendance was 1.75 times a month." Since the pandemic, PEW research states that one third of Church goers, say they will not be going back to church. WOW! That is heartbreaking!

You might be wondering why I am throwing out all these statistics out. Or maybe you sense where I am going with this. At any rate, it is imperative we are aware of where we, as a people, have landed post pandemic.

If Christians are not choosing the Word or churches to help lead them in their lives, who or what voice are they listening to? Sadly, we are all influenced by all the competing voices in our culture. Even Christians and the Church. We are not immune to the influence of culture whether we are Christian or not.

In polls a few years back by the Barna Group, only 29% believed there was an actual place called Hell or a devil. If we polled a wide number of Christians on any given Christian topic, how many would even agree on the basic beliefs of Christianity? Among believers there is a wide variation of beliefs. Over time these scattered beliefs become truth to those following them.

I have heard Christians who say they believe Jesus was a good teacher but not the son of God.

There are some groups who think their religion is the only one going to heaven or those who believe being this certain religion has it "all right" and they are above all the others. They speak against other denominations and if we could see into heaven, I don't believe it is segregated by denomination. Think some will be surprised? Believe me when I say, God does have a sense of humor and my guess is he chuckles at some of our ridiculous beliefs.

Even within my own family some have believed the Bible contains good stories to help make a point, but they don't believe they are actual accounts.

Question:

How can all the philosophies about Christianity be correct and true if we all believe differently?

God does grant free will to all of us. We are free to choose our path and free to follow or not follow with Him. He allows us to think what we want too, even if it is wrong. It is not his desire for us to focus on incorrect thinking but He doesn't mandate our thinking. The scripture guides us on our thinking. We have to choose.

Question:

Where do you see yourself in this discussion? Are you following your own path or allowing God to lead you, or maybe it is a mix of both.

As of this writing, I am 61 years young and I have seen and experienced a great deal of change in our world and walked with God since I was 13 years old. (Prior to my profession of faith, I had ALWAYS known and believed in God, thanks to a Godly Grandmother who made sure I knew Him.) The more cultural narratives I hear, the more I need a walk with God through His narrative. God is trustworthy, His word is true and He loves us more than anyone ever will. There has been a lot of change in my life time and God is not opposed to change, but He is opposed to those who would attempt to rewrite His precepts.

Many of the competing cultural narratives are deceptive lies and incongruent to His word. Yet, we fall for them.

This year I decided to read the Bible through. It is pretty enlightening to see themes and trends in the generations behind us. I have to admit, there are so many similarities to our current age. We seem surprised by many issues and tragedies happening, but if we look back in time, we would see nothing is really new expect the current time and year.

I don't want to belabor the negatives, but I do want to point out that without God, His leading and Word, we as a society become lambs led to slaughter by the negative narrative of the enemy and those against God.

Psalm 44:22

Yea, for thy sake are we killed all the day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.

2 Timothy 4:3

"For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions,"

Isaiah 5:20

"Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!"

Basically, we are told about the times we are in now. It was like this back when Jesus walked the earth.

Answer

As Christians, we have gotten caught up in worldly culture. Now I don't say this to offend you, or diminish your walk. Remember, this is a general statement based on statistics, experience and study. Please hang with me, I will give you some tools to help stand in faith.

A Story

Many years ago when I moved to another town and my daughter had been attending a Christian School, we had to apply for another Christian School in the area. We were not immediately accepted until they did a thorough review. As part of the orientation for parents, we had to attend a parent's training/orientation. We did an activity which sticks in my mind to this day. The headmaster asked us to write down as many Jingles from commercials we could think of and then he asked us to write down as many scriptures as possible. What do you think was more prevalent for these Christian parents? What do you think you would have ben able to do?

Sadly, The jingles won out. I have to admit I was dumbstruck. Even among Christian parents, they had memorized jingles over scripture. Over time I have seen so much more showing me the slow progression of culture influencing Christians.

What voice are we listening to?

Think about your own life. If a person with a video camera followed you through out your day, what percentage of time would they find you in secular activities or listening to secular messages as compared to Abiding with God and following His leading?

We tend to separate secular and sacred, but to God "all is sacred:. Interesting how this has happened as a society.

Self Reflection

Once I talked with a man who had been hurt in a car accident, he poured out his story, but when I asked him if I could pray with him, he said, 'You just keep that in church." I wanted to giggle at how absurd that was, but it was telling of the times.

We have been told not to evangelize in this place or that and God has been reduced to a church building in people's minds. What is permissible in church and what is permissible outside those 4 walls.

We need to "Measure all things through the lens of God". We as men/women will need to humble ourselves and walk out our lives in Christ, doing what he shows us to do in His word and that is when we will see change. If each of us submitted to Him, set boundaries to what is not God's heart and lay down distractions, purposing to show God's love, the world would change. This all sounds simple but when everything comes flying apart in our lives it is not as simple as it sounds when all is going well.

If you are having lots of problems in your life right now or have had them in the past, then know they come from two sources. (1) We will reap what we sow. Meaning, if we make poor decisions they will come back on us and others who are in the fallout. For instance if we shop lift in a store, we will eventually get caught and arrested, (2) The devil and his minions are behind evil we see. For instance, all the shootings we have seen in our country show a person who kills as many people as possible and then either kills themselves or the police kill them. The enemy's sole purpose is to steal, kill, and destroy. He INFLUENCES these situations when people believe what they hear is their own thoughts. These are the evil ones voice disguised as a person's thoughts. And yes there IS mental illness, I am not referring with those who have a medical history. I am talking about you and me and every day folks who go out and do the unthinkable.

John 10:10

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

God does not cause destruction, but He will allow it for reasons sometimes only He knows.

Do we trust God in all things, or do we only trust him when we are getting everything we want or all is going well? It is not for us to reason everything out. There are so many situations we will never possibly understand. I also know, God is the only way to make it in our world.

Proverbs 3:5-6

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight."

Isaiah 55:8-9 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

I was once told by a prayer leader," if you are a Christian, then you have a target on your back." Meaning, the devil and his minions will do everything possible to stop any progress for the Kingdom of God. Wow, was that true! God even tells us we will have problems.

John 16:33

"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

1 Peter 5:8

Be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary the devil walks about as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.

So what are we to do? Stand firm in faith, submit to God and keep moving forward. If we are still here, then there is something for us to do. It is not all about pleasing ourselves. Read the last Chapter of Ephesians if you want to know more on standing firm.

James 4:7

"Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."

I had a conversation with my husband today and I said, "I will regret it if we don't keep moving forward with what God has planned." I don't want to be left missing out on God's Great Adventures in my life and making my life matter in the large scheme of things."

Self Reflection

Where are you in your walk? Do you follow God and His word, or the voices of culture, correctness and what is politically correct?

Do you know the call you have on your life? Do you live your life being "just" a good person or do you follow God's word in daily life doing what He says even if it is tough or uncomfortable?

Do you know your purpose and are you walking in it?

Is it more important for you to listen to your friends and family or God's word and the Holy Spirit's leading?

Who are you walking with in Daily life?

I once heard a sermon where the Pastor said, "You will become the average of your 5 closest friends."

How are the people in your life influencing you? If Jesus stood in front of you and asked this question what would you say? I ask this because "birds of a feather flock together". What does your flock look like?

Joyce Meyers says, "if you are not affecting others they can infect you. "

Do you have people in your life who are influencing you toward God or away from God?

(I am not referring to doing church stuff. I am talking about growing in intimacy with God). Some churches have become like social clubs saying what sounds like the right words, but not really walking it out." God wants us to have fellowship, but not put that above relationship with Him.

What does your relationship with God look like for you presently?

Character Creep is a real thing! This is where a person compromises just a little and over time they find themselves where they never wanted to end up. Most of us do not end up in a tough spot overnight. It starts one small step at a time. A pastor talked about this once. He said, "You don't wake up one morning, find yourself in bed with someone who is not your spouse and say, "How did I get in this bed?" No, it has occurred by many compromising steps to get there.

From my long history of living, I can tell you, society has come a long way in character creep. What was once considered unacceptable is now the norm in many areas. Since God does not change then why would any of us accept the changes toward immorality and violence we see today. God is not on His throne waving a green flag to go after these things, yet we are being forced to believe what we are told by those running with a destructive narrative.

God never tells us anything to restrict us or control us. If He tells us to do or not do something, it is for our benefit and care. Just like a parent would want to protect their child from danger.

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I don't know about you, but I want to finish well. I want to hear the words, "Well done good and faithful servant." I want to experience the unimaginable with God.

1 Corinthians 2:9

"However, as it is written: "What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived" -- the things God has prepared for those who love him--"

I am not interested in following ungodly advice or voices of hate and division.

In this world with all the competing voices, listen to the one who loves you the most and ALWAYS has your best interest at heart. Do not listen to the one who wants to kill you. We are told to be on guard. Do you know how to do this or even recognize deceiving voices?

God's word is a good place to find out. If we would ALL place the WORD with our decisions, plans and words, we would be in the will of God for our lives. If we operate out of our fleshly desires we will receive them back to us usually burned up because it didn't work.

John 10:10

"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full."

Daniel Pontius writes, "Jesus' death and resurrection have stripped the devil of all His power, except the power of deception. As a result, the Holy Spirit is constantly attempting to mature each of us more and more into the image of Jesus Christ, day by day, in order to move us closer and closer into our personal identities in Him. This is something that the devil just cannot permit to happen, for allowing it to continue would spell his destruction and the dismantling of his entire kingdom."

The devil is an identity thief. He wants to transform our identify, yours and mine, to look like him and not like God. In addition, he wants to destroy every living creature. Why? One answer to this was evident in Heaven: he was all about self worship. We see this in our world today through the words and plans of men. (Me, Me, Me, and I want, I want, I, I, I).

What platforms can you see displaying this today? Where to do you see folks displaying all they are, all they are doing and how great they are? Behind the scenes in many of these situations, may look differently. What we see on the outside is counterfeit.

Anytime I see people displaying perfection in their life, I know it is deceptive. This is especially exposed when there is no transparency or authenticity. What is really a sign for me is when everything they speak is about them, what THEY are doing or how Great everyone and everything is in their lives. I am not referring to not being joyful and content in all circumstance, I am talking about self-centeredness and exaltation of self.

Story

Recently, a leader in a group we were involved in asked, "What do you want from this group" Basically He wanted to understand people's desires. One lady spoke up and said, "I want friends who will take me just as I am and love me anyway, faults and all."

Isn't that something all of us desire? To be accepted and loved just as we are? Guess what, God does, He created us to be who we are and each of us is an original, not a carbon copy.

One of the most effective strategies of the devil is deception through counterfeit.

If you were given a counterfeit $20.00 bill could you recognize it? Well, this happened to me and they caught it at the bank. They are TRAINED to spot counterfeit bills. As Christians, we need to be trained to spot counterfeit agendas and even counterfeit ministries and leaders in the church.

Does that sound like blasphemy? About 12 years ago, I had an opportunity to attend a conference where God really came close and showed me what was happening in my local church. Previously, I had honored the leaders and believed they were VERY Holy and next to God, so I listened and followed them. After all, I did not have the education, training or experience to make up my own mind. I did what they said. Then I found out the truth and God convicted me deeply on it. I was horrified at the deception I had believed. The pastor had even stated, "You cannot understand the Bible, I need to explain it to you." Basically, he was saying, we as the sheep were too dumb to understand. I am not knocking good biblical teaching and we most certainly need it, but the word is alive and God will reveal many things to us through his word if we are in tune to it. A counsel of wise people is always prudent, but we don't need to be told what God is saying to us.

I am not saying distrust and do not honor God's elect, I AM saying test every word.

1 John 4:1

"Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world."

Thessalonians 5:21

"But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good;"

Remember this from the Bible

John:10:27

"My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:"

I had been a Christian all those years when my eyes were opened to the truth. It should not have come as a surprise, but admittedly, I had gotten led by current Christian culture. Which means people came up with many things I believed. I was told through men's words, basically a kind of brainwashing, and then God opened my eyes, much like he did with Paul of Tarsus. I was heartsick over it. Now I listen with discerning ears as I have grown closer to what the Holy Spirit is showing me.

Self Reflections

Do you know anything about Church history or what churches looked like then and how they operated?

Looking at church now, how does it compare? Unfortunately some have fallen away.

A Story

My husband and I were traveling for his job a few years back and since it was a Sunday, I wanted to find a church we could attend in the evening. As I searched, frankly there were not many churches. But I persevered and found some. As I read what they were about on their websites, I was intrigued by one in particular which was lovingly reaching out to the marginalized. As I read their beliefs, I knew the deception when I spotted it. Basically, they took scripture and said, the scriptures says, this, but what it really means is this. They were twisting the meaning of the scripture to suit their agenda. How sad. God doesn't need us to twist His word for Him to help others. I knew what I read were lies.

Romans 16:17-18

I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them. For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naïve.

Mathew 7:15

"Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves."

By the way, we didn't find a church to attend. Keep in mind, getting rid of anything which puts a snuff on God's is a scheme of the devil.

I have watched this slowly happen over my life time. I grew up with God's word in the school. Yep, it realty existed. Things were not perfect, but they were MORE Godly. We didn't have to be concerned about shootings, abductions, or molestations. Yes, those things existed, but not to the extent they do now. It was more an exception than a rule.

My grandmother did not lock her door at night. What does that tell you?

There is division everywhere we look. That is not God's heart.

Look what the scripture says:

2 Timothy 3:1-5

"But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people."

Good NEWS!

So many things we are seeing are troubling. God is still on His throne. HE is not tied up in knots over current events. It is nothing he has not seen or dealt with before. Remember back in Genesis people became so evil he chose a family to survive and sent a flood to wipe out mankind. When we look from His perspective, so much is revealed. God has dealt with us and our disobedience, lawlessness, sinfulness for centuries and He still loves us and wants us.

Jeremiah 30:22

"So you will be my people, and I will be your God.'"

He offers more grace and mercy than any of us deserve.

Where to Go From Here?

The reports on the churches from Pew research states that even though one third of Christians say they will not come back to church, 25% state they are MORE committed now than they were before the pandemic

So let me think about the math on this. One third leaving, 2/3 of congregations left and out of that, there are a committed 25%. One plus God is always a majority!

1 Peter 1:7

"So that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ."

Proverbs 17:3

"The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold,

and the Lord tests hearts."

God is moving to refine the churches and His people!

Presently

Where do you see yourself if you are a Christian? Are you staying or leaving church. Are you in the 25% who have a deeper commitment or in the remaining group who hasn't seen much change?

If you see yourself in this 25%, I challenge you to find out with God the plan for you life. .

Are you living the life Jesus died for and if the answer is no, what needs to happen?

If the answer is yes, are you willing to share with others? There is MORE momentum in numbers. When a group of like minded Christians get together with God, look out! Look what Jesus did with the Twelve! They Changed the World!

God is writing a great story in your life. Do you want to be a spectator or a participant. The Father of Creation is calling all of us to walk closely beside Him and go on amazing adventures to help build the kingdom. I have personally been a part of some of these adventures and have had a glimpse. But, oh, how I want to see the full measure of His grace and glory!

Amazing Adventures with God

God has been teaching and showing us many things in the last few years. Some of these things include actual physical healings. We had a young man living with us for a short time who was not a Christian. He had one leg a bit longer than the other one. We asked him if we could pray for him and his leg. He was open to this. Non-Christians are typically more open then Christians. We believe there are a few reasons for this, but one is they don't want their current theology challenged. At any rate, my husband started to pray, basically he was blessing the young man and getting ready to command the leg to grow and before he could ask, his short leg shot out like a rocket. The three of us saw it. Boy, now do I wish we had filmed it.

What we have learned since this experience is sometimes you get to deliver the gift of healing and other times God does it. Basically, God wanted to show the young man how much HE loved him and God himself instantaneously healed him with praying for it. He does this many times with atheists to demonstrate how much he loves them and wants to have a relationship with them.

Pretty amazing, huh? This young man left our home and later accepted Christ!

If you are reading this and have actually gotten this far, I applaud you. The devil does NOT want you to find out the truth. Remember, if you listen to the voices which say God is not real, remember, those voices are the ones trying to deceive you and take you out.

WE will ALL find out in the end. WE are all mortals and our earthly body will die. Are you a gambler that will take chances on a long shot, or are you wise and believe Jesus was who he said he was and follow the Kingdom of God so you will take up residence there and live forever?

He allows us to choose. Do you want to live the abundant life Jesus died for you to live, or follow culture trends and be socially acceptable.

As you ponder this, what is most important to you, looking good, or being obedient to God? By default if we are not submitted to God we are wide open to the devil and his influence.

Prayer

I pray your eyes and ears will be open to truth. You will seek God for a personal relationship and allow Him to lead you, and you will have wisdom and discernment to know HIs voice.

If you don't know God and have never received Jesus as your personal savior I ask God to make himself known to you.

May God co-labor with each and everyone of you for the kingdom and have great adventures with Our king of king and lord of lords,

I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people,19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength

Ephesians 1:18-19

Amen

Take a leap of Faith and Soar with God!