MARCH 28 "I SURE WISH GOD WOULD SPEAK TO ME"

    One of the most common complaints, apparently for Christians, is that God does speak to us audibly, if only He would just speak to us. Having Pastored for 10 years I have learned to bite my tongue, more often than not. If I spoke my mind every time someone slipped a bit from the straight & narrow, well.......and that's me, imagine if God spoke audibly to us, imagine if God didn't bite his tongue (so to speak). In our text we read today God speaks and it's all about "house cleaning". I believe they mindset of the Israelites, whom God did often speak to was the opposite of ours. Their mindset was more, "if God isn't speaking, that's a good thing". We may look different than the Israelites, but as humans we are not much different. We fill our lives with junk, idols, compromises & false gods. We think if God was to speak it would be marvelous and loving; and I'm sure at times it would be, but other times it would be "a shake down". And we would walk away from those times saying, "I preferred when God didn't speak". The truth of the matter is, "God does speak". It's just we are not hearing, we have lost or never had any sensitivity to his "still small voice". And when He speaks to us today, through the Holy Spirit it is still about "house cleaning" and others time not. The more often we come before God and spend time with him in prayer and meditation, the less house cleaning will need to be addressed. Israel has long strayed from a close relationship with God and so when He does speak and does seem negative, but who brought that on?  We are looking for God to speak, sometimes traveling to Conferences, in desperation to hear God speak, all the while, we ignore his voice in our own city, in our own church, in our own living room or wherever God might speak. God does still speak but often times, He is wanting us to make time to sit down and listen. We want Him to speak while we are in line at Starbucks, getting our Latte, or speak to us while we are shoving down our drive thru lunch, but God says, "be still and hear my voice".   The cry of the Christian is, "I sure wish God would speak to me" and the cry of God is, " I sure wish they would slow down and listen to me".