One of my favorite songs entitled ‘Listen’ is from the gospel artist, Marvin Sapp.  LISTEN! How many times has God tried to speak to us, but we failed to LISTEN? The lyrics of the song say, “He’s trying to get your attention right now…God’s tryna tell you something…I know you got your own plan, but God’s got a better one…God’s tryna tell you something…Listen” 

Many times we get in the way of what God is trying to accomplish in our lives, because we listen to the voice of others.  We allow the voice of others to get in our head.  We convince ourselves it is God speaking to us.  We find in 1 Kings 19:11-12 that we must be able to recognize the voice of God when he is speaking.  The scriptures say,”…the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; 12 and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice.”  God spoke to Elijah in a still small voice.  To hear God’s voice, Elijah had to listen.  We have to LISTEN!

It was the voice of God that spoke to me while serving food to the homeless in Franklin Park in DC in 2013.  God said, “You know they (the homeless) need more than food, right?”  After that encounter with God, I listened, went to Pastors Tapp and McFarlane, and Winter Haven Emergency Shelter was started in the basement of the Sligo church office.  Since then, God allowed House of Divine Guidance to partner with many other churches to operate the emergency shelter. 

In 2016, I had another encounter with God when planning to rent a house using the credit of a board member because mine’s was not so good.  After leaving her a message to make my request, God spoke to me and said, “You don’t trust me?” After my conversation with God, I listened, canceled my request and followed God’s direction and went forward in faith. God gave us the house we wanted using my credit without any problems. With the pandemic, last year, I lost my job, the shelter was closed when the church facilities we use also closed their doors, and I lost my housing.  It would have been easy to listen to the voice of hopelessness in my head.  Instead, I chose otherwise.  Little by little God brought me out of the wilderness only after listening to and following his still small voice.  I am here to tell you that following God’s plan and listening to his voice, you will never fail even if you cannot see how it will happen.  So many times along the way, fear tried to stop me. I wanted to turn to my own way because I could not see it possible. Each time, God spoke and redirected me.  God spoke to me through an interview I watched with Joyce Meyer’s.  Meyer was talking about her latest book, ‘Do It Afraid: Embracing Courage in the Face of Fear.’  In her interview, she said fear should not paralyze us, but propels us to act.  God says, “Be not afraid.”  I listened to God and stepped out of my comfort zone.  A week later, I had a contract on a five bedroom home for our shelter that I have no idea how God qualified me based on my income.  With God, all things are possible. God gave the house for less than the asking price when five other contracts came in over the asking price came in within hours and days following the ratification of my contract.  The bank waived the appraisal because of the value of the home based on the neighborhood.  The closing costs kept dropping each week, and I just received a refund check from the mortgage company in the mail.  We would not be able to reopen Winter Haven Emergency Shelter this season if I had not LISTENED!      

I am here today to say, God is trying to tell you something.  God is trying to tell you something.   God is trying to tell you something.  LISTEN!   God is not in the wind as we are pushed to act based on what others want us to do.  God is not speaking through the earthquake and crisis in our lives causing us to make rash decisions.  God is not in the fire.  We will never get burnt when we listen to God.  Learn to discern God’s voice.  Learn to heed to God’s voice. And, as Eli told Samuel, next time you hear the voice of God say, “Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.”  Finally, I say, TRUST GOD!  Everything God says will not make sense.  But, Proverbs 3:5 says “lean not to your own understanding.”  God is trying to tell you something. Yes, we must listen.  Moreover, we must trust God with all our heart and as the angels said to the shepherds in the field, “Be not afraid.”  Act in the face of fear and listen to the voice of God. God is trying to tell you something.  LISTEN!