Increasing Your Ability To Hear From God

Pastor Cleveland 1  1 My  heart is not proud, LORD, my eyes are not haughty; I do not concern myself with great matters or things too wonderful for me. 2 But I have calmed and quieted myself, I am like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child I am content. 3 Israel, put your hope in the LORD both now and forevermore. NIV    GOD, I’m not trying to rule the roost, I don’t want to be king of the mountain. I haven’t meddled where I have no business or fantasized grandiose plans. 2 I’ve kept my feet on the ground, I’ve cultivated a quiet heart. Like a baby content in its mother’s arms, my soul is a baby content. 3 Wait, Israel, for GOD. Wait with hope. Hope now; hope always! The Message Pastor Cleveland 2  1. Lord, my heart is not haughty, nor my eyes lofty; neither do I exercise myself in matters too great or in things too wonderful for me.  2. Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul; like a weaned child with his mother, like a weaned child is my soul within me [ceased from fretting].  3. O Israel, hope in the Lord from this time forth and forever. Amplifed   1. O Eternal One, my heart is not occupied with proud thoughts; my eyes do not look down on others; I don’t even begin to get involved in matters too big, matters of faith, state, business, or the many things that defy my ability to understand them. 2. Of one thing I am certain: my soul has become calm, quiet, and contented in You. Like a weaned child resting upon his mother, I am quiet. My soul is like this weaned child. 3. O Israel, stake your trust completely in the Eternal— from this very moment and into the vast future. The Voice Pastor Cleveland 3   “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! Pastor Cleveland 4  6 Jesus     used this parable (illustration) with them, but they did not understand what He was talking about. 7 So Jesus said again, I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, that I Myself am the Door [a]for the sheep. 8 All others who came [as such] before Me are thieves and robbers, but the [true] sheep did not listen to and obey them. 9 I am the Door; anyone who enters in through Me will be saved (will live). He will come in and he will go out [freely], and will find pasture. 10 The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it [b]overflows). Pastor Cleveland 5  27 The sheep that are My own hear and are listening to My voice; and I know them, and they follow Me.  28 And I give them eternal life, and they shall never lose it or perish throughout the ages. [To all eternity they shall never by any means be destroyed.] And no one is able to snatch them out of My hand. Pastor Cleveland 6 Luke 10:19 (NIV) 19 I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. Pastor Cleveland 7       John 14: 15 “If you love me, keep my commands. 21 Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.” 23 Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. John 15:10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. John 14:13-14 And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it. John 15:7-8  7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. Pastor Cleveland 8 1 “Very truly I tell you Pharisees, anyone who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. 2 The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5 But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice.” Pastor Cleveland 9 1. Fall of Man – Gen-3:6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Pastor Cleveland 10       Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” 4 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” 5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. 6 “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written: “‘He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.” 7 Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.” 8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 9 “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.” 10 Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.”11 Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him. Pastor Cleveland 11  Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. 16 For everything in the world the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life comes not from the Father but from the world. 17 The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever. Pastor Cleveland 12  John 8:44 You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.  2 Corinthians 10:4-5 44 You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. Pastor Cleveland 13         Satan puts a “spin” on a situation Typically comes as a “thought” or “feeling”. They have different shades. Satan hopes to secure an “ agreement” from us where we believe the spin, go with the feeling, and accept. Then, we come under the spell and come under the influence of that interpretation of events. Then, its pretty much plays itself out; it becomes self-fulfilling. These agreements define our reality and relationships. They become rooted in our lives. Some are historic and familiar that we barely recognize them. They come in between you and God. Pastor Cleveland 14 Ask God to reveal any agreements that we have made. Matthew 12:25-29 Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. 26 If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? 27 And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. 28 But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. “Or again, how can anyone enter a strong man’s house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can plunder his house. Pastor Cleveland 15 Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. Pastor Cleveland 16  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. Pastor Cleveland 17 Mathew 6:10 your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Pastor Cleveland 18  42 He went away a second time and prayed, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.” Pastor Cleveland 19  Learn to resist agreements at the door vs. letting it fester. Pastor Cleveland 20 1 Peter 5:8-9 8Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9 Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings. James 4:7-9 7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded Pastor Cleveland 21  Hebrews 12:15-16 See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many. 16 See that no one is sexually immoral, or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance rights as the oldest son. Pastor Cleveland 22 Ask- Pause- Listen Pastor Cleveland 23 Take a moment to pray and listen to what God might want to reveal. Pastor Cleveland 24