Hurry is a Barrier to Hearing God

CURRENT TEACHING SERIES Can You Hear Me Now?

Hurry is a Barrier to Hearing God By Rick Warren — Feb 26, 2015 “The seeds on the rocky soil represent those who hear the message and receive it with joy. But since they don’t have deep roots, they believe for a while, then they fall away when they face temptation.” (Luke 8:13 NLT) To cultivate an open mind so that you can hear from God, you’ve got to allocate time to listen. That means you’ve got to slow down. You’ve got to be quiet. You’ve got to put it in your schedule so you have time to hear God speak. The first barrier to hearing God speak is resistance. But the second barrier to hearing God is hurry. When we live hurried lives, God gets shuffled to the sidelines. We say, “God, I want to hear from you. But hurry up! I’ve only got five minutes!” God wants more than your leftovers and your spare moments. He wants to be the center of your life. The way that you prove he’s the center of your life is by allocating time to listen. Jesus says in Luke 8:6, “Other seed fell among rocks. It began to grow, but the plant soon wilted and died for lack of moisture” (NLT). Israel is not a very fertile country; most of it is a thin layer of topsoil over bedrock of limestone. If you plant something on this rocky soil, the seed will sprout — but it can’t get deep roots, so it withers and dies. In Luke 8:13 Jesus explains that this kind of soil represents “those who hear the message and receive it with joy. But since they don’t have deep roots, they believe for a while, then they fall away when they face temptation.” The shallow soil represents a superficial mind. Sometimes we react superficially to God’s Word. We get excited. We get emotional. We’re moved impulsively. But we don’t let God’s Word sink into the bedrock of our personality, so there’s no real change. How do you grow beyond superficiality? How do you develop spiritual roots? There are two very practical ways. First, schedule a daily quiet time with God. It can be 10 or 15 minutes. You sit, be quiet, listen to God, and ask him, “Is there anything you want to say to me through your Word?” You can review your notes from church or journal or sing your praises. Nothing will build spiritual roots faster than a daily quiet time with God. Second, join a weekly small group. That’s where God can speak to you through other people as you discuss and interact and learn from each other. Hebrews 10:25 says, “Let us not give up the habit of meeting together .... Instead, let us encourage one another” (TEV). Both of these habits require you to be intentional with your time. When you allocate part of your day for a quiet time and part of your week for small group, you are showing God that you want him at the center of your life and that you want to hear from him. PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick >> Talk It Over Besides work, what fills up the most time in your schedule? How does this activity or responsibility relate to your relationship with God? Why do you think fellowship is so important to our ability to grow as individuals? How will you be more intentional with your time this week so that you can hear from God?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8eL2dSaRllI Free from Condemnation TODAY’S SCRIPTURE “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, who live and walk not after the dictates of the flesh, but after the dictates of the Spirit.” (Romans 8:1, AMP) TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria When you accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you are free from condemnation! Is there something that you feel guilty about? If you have repented, the Bible says He takes your sin and throws it as far as the east is from the west. He casts your sins into the sea of forgetfulness. God actually chooses to forget your sins! That means your sins are completely removed. In fact, they aren't even yours anymore. Don’t let the enemy dig up your past or try to make you feel guilty for something that happened a long time ago, or even yesterday. The enemy is called the “accuser of the brethren” and he works overtime to bring you down with false accusations. Be confident that God doesn’t remember your past. You are free from condemnation through the blood of Jesus Christ. The next time the enemy brings up your past, declare that you are free from condemnation in Jesus’ Name! A PRAYER FOR TODAY Heavenly Father, thank You for setting me free in Jesus! Thank You for forgiveness. Thank You washing me clean and making me new today. I receive your grace and mercy so that I can be a vessel used by You today. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.