God commands; "Hear His voice."

Does God command that we hear His voice? YES! Jesus takes Peter, James and John up to a mountain, His clothes become brilliant, God overshadow's them and then says those words. John 10:4b "the sheep follow him, for they know his voice." 5: " 5 Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers." We NEED to hears His voice, because all of us like sheep have gone astray!(Isaiah 53:6) The other reason we have to hear Him is so we can believe, so we can do the things the Father says we can, like cast demons out! Sin gets in the way of us hearing, and prayer and fasting can help us deny ourselves, pick up our crosses and follow after Him daily. Mark 9:17 Then one of the crowd answered and said, “Teacher, I brought You my son, who has a mute spirit. 18 And wherever it seizes him, it throws him down; he foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth, and becomes rigid. So I spoke to Your disciples, that they should cast it out, but they could not.” 19 He answered him and said, “O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him to Me.” 20 Then they brought him to Him. And when he saw Him, immediately the spirit convulsed him, and he fell on the ground and wallowed, foaming at the mouth. 21 So He asked his father, “How long has this been happening to him?” And he said, “From childhood. 22 And often he has thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” 23 Jesus said to him, “If you can believe,[a] all things are possible to him who believes.” 24 Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!” 25 When Jesus saw that the people came running together, He rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it: “Deaf and dumb spirit, I command you, come out of him and enter him no more!” 26 Then the spirit cried out, convulsed him greatly, and came out of him. And he became as one dead, so that many said, “He is dead.” 27 But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose. 28 And when He had come into the house, His disciples asked Him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?” 29 So He said to them, “This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting.” Why could we not cast it out...He replied...nothing but prayer and fasting. One translation even says MUCH prayer and fasting. In order to follow after Him, we have to hear His voice, and in order to hear His voice we have to do His will, take up our cross, deny ourselves, and follow Him...DAILY! Matthew 16:24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me." Lord help us to hear You, help us to trust in You with all our heart, and lean not on our own understanding; In all our ways acknowledge You, so You can direct our paths. Lord, we believe, help our unbelief, in Jesus name! Amen! Proverbs 3:5-6

100 years of knowing about Christ, but not knowing Christ.

I got to see a 100 year old woman pray to receive Christ yesterday! I talked to her first this last summer, when she turned 100. She went to church every Sunday growing up. She was baptized as a infant. She went though confirmation. As I talked to her about Christ, she kept saying, "I've never thought about it like that," and "I've never gone that deep." She knew about Christ, but didn't know Him. Matthew 7:21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ So she didn't quite understand how to receive Christ, because she thought she already had! Her religious tradition had not yet become a relationship, a "first love." Then I visited with her a second time, and she warmed up a bit, I got to pray with her, but not to receive Christ, she still didn't understand. Then this third time, yesterday, we talked more, as friends this time, and I was finally able to ask her, "Do you want to pray to receive Christ now?" She said, "Yes." So we prayed a very simple prayer, and she asked Jesus to be her Lord, she confessed her sin, received Christ in, and now at 100, she's born again! Both times we prayed she was touched, and would cry. It is so sweet to be able to minister to someone who wants ministry. So many of us harden our hearts and we don't want to be touched. Well, as in this woman's case, it's never too late! Hebrews 3:14 For we have become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end, 15 while it is said, "TODAY IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE, DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS, AS WHEN THEY PROVOKED ME." As has just been said: "Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion." God bless your day!