Week One, Day Two

God's Word

The LORD said, "I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their sufferings. So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey-the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. " Exodus 3:7-8

The LORD said, "Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by." Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. 1 Kings 19:11-12

As soon as Jesus was baptized, He went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on Him. And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased." Matthew 3:16-17

Live it

If someone came up to you and asked you to describe God's voice, what would you say? We all have our own idea of what God sounds like. Who does God sound like to you?

Your parents: For some of us, God's voice has a very parental tone. When you hear God talking to you, it sounds like your dad or maybe your mom. He has their tone of voice, or maybe he uses the same kind of language

Your pastor: God might have a more soft, comforting kind of tone. Maybe he has this real holy tone in his voice, and it sounds like he wears a suit and smells like mothballs.

Your grandfather: God might sound like an old man, gently reminding you to obey your parents or trying to give you a huge wet kiss with his false teeth out of his mouth.

Your favorite teacher: God might sound like a teacher, pushing you to nail a 4.0 GPA, do your best on an exam, and keep up with you school activities.

Are those the best example of God's voice? Nah. The Bible offers up a lot of passages that give us a better idea of how He speaks. The Bible doesn't exactly say what God's voice sounds like, but as you read some passages, you can almost hear it. Think about these examples and you'll see what I mean.

In Exodus 3:1-10, God calls to Moses. Read that passage and you can almost hear a pleading tone in God's voice. His children are trapped in Egypt, and he's desperate to get them out. God is asking Moses, but there's also an urgent, commanding kind of tone.

Matthew 3:13-17 describes Jesus' baptism. Before He begins His ministry, Jesus has to be baptized by John the Baptist. God shows up and makes a short speech. Again, the Bible doesn't tell us the tone, but if you read the passage, you can almost hear the fatherly tone in God's voice. He's proud. He's excited.

Who cares? What's the big deal about how God's voice sounds?

Have you ever heard God's voice? Do you know what his voice sounds like? He speaks to you, you know. Maybe not in the voice you expect, but He does speak to you.

Today, take time to listen to God. Find a quiet place where you'll be able to pay attention, and then sit quietly. When God speaks to you, write down what you think He's saying-whether it's a thought that comes into you head or something you pick up from reading His Word. Then hang what He's said to you every day. Even though God speaks with different voices, when He speaks, He speaks for a reason. And when He speaks, we gotta listen.

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They are questions for you to think about.

Open this, go to the discussion boards and open AskYou Day 2, Week 1.