Advance Words: Listening

The heart of every man is a great image or life doesn't usually feel that way. Jesus speaks of narrow gates wide roads masculine journey is filled with many twist and turns, so how do we keep from losing heart trying to find a way when life feels more like a losing battle than something worth dying for, grab your gear, request your band of brothers will serve as the guides we call masculine journey masculine journey starts here now you would think that we planned this show four days before Valentine's Day just say because tonight's show.

We been doing the shows right Jim on advanced words. When Wayne with us today we have Jim and you know how we have a word that God's given us for the year and the advance word that Jim's wife gave him for Valentine's Day. The advance word that God gave you was watching listen, listen, which is a much tougher word that I thought when I got it. Yeah yeah it isn't a very interesting thing and so thing has to do with listening to God listening to others praying listening to your wife, which we have our first clip appear from show that personally I dearly love and Raymond tries his best to listen throughout this and I think this one time. It all went wrong for this is terrible is not an answer, listening, so I just was on the worst kids in the neighborhood. Let's talk about what reflect okay okay to judge, you are angry because because he used to be your total IC you think too much attention to Michael and Jeff right and you're upset because we gave mural giraffe that you were claiming that though because we gave it to Michael without asking right well made a mistake and everybody makes mistakes right mommy it's broken honey itself classy still be standing in never happen again. Well before we to Jim bit about you know how that works with God. How the advance works for you to listen for hours before you get to the advance work that's true and this was his decision not mine and I kind of really like that very much, and it is a matter of that conversation. No word, we're always having some other desire in our discussion with God and with other people.

What about the giraffe as much as it was about husband-and-wife and not everybody left right never really been part of the show, but that was a great clip and one of the things about the advance word and it's good be different for everybody is that that's how God works to oversee the site. All of us are going to get different words, we have different things to focus on. We have different relationships with God. He loves us all equally, but not the same is sort of like having kids this this clip makes a great illustration of listings. A complicated thing is not just hearing it's actually understanding and having that a person realize with some intimacy that you get yeah absolutely so it's like Jim said we all hear differently and and is the but it's actually been active listening that the Raymond was talking participating in what God is saying to you right listening and so the interesting thing out.

You've got to Southern clip. Speaking of active listening and God showed up in a very interesting way for you yourself when you are trying to hear from them but he didn't even hear from him like three or right yeah I was a house in a season of seeking the kingdom of heaven. I dread the diverse seek first the kingdom of heaven. All these things will be given to you and and I was struggling with that I was I was several weeks. Others praying and of this reading all of the parables about the kingdom of heaven and I wasn't at this particular moment, looking for an answer house watching a movie house sitting down with family and just watching a movie and the clip is from Dr. strange and it was like Godsmack and said here's the answer was that active listening, so we had to hear the clip and get to hear the answer.

See if you can hear it. As you turn on your active listening skills to Dr. strange. I spent many years hearing teaches you think this is yes the future, such always, it sounds because you crave success because of your fear of failure may be a great doctor precisely what kept you from great still keep you from learning the simplest and most significant lesson will choose subway maps.

What is your here as soon as she started talking to strangers is the ancient one and for me I was hearing from Holy Spirit is as she was talking to him.

It felt like he was talking directly to me all the things that she was standing on was was directed at me. I was always very successful in sports and in working all these things and I carried the spirit as well, but as I'm asking about the kingdom of heaven, and soon she said it's not about you. It was just like my eyes were opened.

I could, I understood what it meant.

Understood the kingdom of heaven is not about me it's about the person across from me. It's about actually walking and what he's called us to be as disciples as is you representative of the kingdom of the kingdom of heaven. We are called to represent right, there's a larger story.

Absolute, that clearly he's the hero of and you know we get to play our part. But ultimately the story but that the fascinating thing about this is Jim that this has to do with listening as well. That part of what you heard from God.

In this listing that you're supposed listen to both God and others. You said, but when you're listening. It's not about you. Absolutely.

And I will. You'll often hear me joke about it is all about me. I say that to remind myself that it's not the what God really laid out for me and I'm just the beginning of this journey with listen but it is I need to listen to him and listening isn't just hearing and it's an active participation in the conversation and in the communion with him.

It's it is about him and as you put it where all of the larger story and we have a role to play, but we aren't the stars of the show and that's how most of us live most of the time so we but the fascinating thing about this and we talked about it just before the show is what we consider listening to God. We call that prayer and in that word is just all mixed up in the English language because prayer does not mean listening. It means requesting and so it's it's a very fascinating concern is that what is prayer praying in English, especially old English, it gets down to begging and asking and I've always been a fan of the a CTS prayer acronym, adoration, confession, Thanksgiving and supplication, which is a perfectly valid all of those things are things you want to do it for me it was always a reminder, yeah. Tell God you love him before you start asking for stuff and that's the order and said but that is such a pale imitation of man-made playing in what we want with God and actually the prayer in the Hebrew did write down the word to float his prayers to fall off his prayer. It has nothing to do with asking it as a self-evaluation examination itself. Reflecting on your relationship with God.

It's an intimate discussion in my world, whether one you know how cool is it that God shows up at times we make these connections we come back we got some really cool stuff that we will talk about these connections that we made love for you are your turn break our website is messed up and running radio.org register same mask I talked about ways you can help support Lily smiled at him was on is information that is Facebook.com where you can waking it once again, PO Box 552 7285 I'm going to make you an offer you can't refuse the guys with this I hear about this book is continuing for the Boot Camp. How can we not continue the Pogo Christmas is over what else to stop their bow goes puts always a time for giving Dennis. It's a masculine journey. Boot camp Bobo I want give one free hundred $99. What an amazing thing that would be to give somebody a gift what they really end up getting as their heart back coming April 12 through the 15th. Go to masculine journey radio.org is one of the greatest investments I know of. Listen to music that we've been talking about listening today, maybe listening to God listening to others, but quite often, Dennis isn't here. He brought us that clip today, but I know it is hard as he often hears from God through the music and what the Doobie Brothers were trying to tell us there is this they're trying to get a message across insulator communicating through their music and and so it's an interesting thing sometimes to and maybe you've had this happen.

I love it when it happens is all the sudden you understand the lyric you may have heard it 100 times or a thousand times and all the sudden the message came through and you had to pull over on the side of the road and just ball I mean I don't know if maybe you think about Robby. This is the masculine journey were fixed up or your man card but but having that happen so that when you read the message come through yeah it's that the work orders revelation right someone can give you say something to you over and over and over until it's just revealed to you if that moment you can hear the hundred times and not fully understand what was being said I got this other clip that that actually Dennis and set this up an account a unique way. It is called hearing from God, and I actually have no idea what movie it came from. So Dennis would have to do all that. The point of this clip is that this young man hears from God and is trying to explain it to his wife is not particularly receptive to the concept and maybe you've heard from God at some point your life and you try to share that with somebody who gave you a similar response. I would challenge you to read the Chronicles of Narnia Prince Caspian versus section there were Lucy sees Azlan is a picture of Christ and she knows she heard that she was supposed to follow him, but she couldn't get anybody else to believe her. So she went with them rather than go with Asselin. Later she has a discussion that night her and Asselin where he asked her you know why and you follow me, and she goes what they would let me and I was the youngest of the group. They didn't believe me.

I and she finally got it.

That will I guess I would've been alone what I I would have been with you and and is a beautiful discussion when you think about it, of winded God touch you with some men, would you really be alone to say this is what I heard and this is what I can share because you really did hear it and when you go with him. You are not going to be alone and it will bring the king said, conscript God spoke to me. He wants us to turn the land around the church into a far, God expects you and this is the he said farmers man farm to farm. No crops to feed the creamy sell the rest of the mortgage save the church's yeah not exactly, we would've been out here in a week doing your job, God spoke to me to me. I think he's been speaking me all along with the salad trucks in the current farmers God wants us to see this little church by making the land into a far be strong and very courageous. Jim asked that you said right or the ready with her right setting this up that there's a disagreement between one of the times God spoke to us or to me the most clearly was when my wife and I agreed on something I had no clue that she would even consider it was when we were called Alaska and she said she'd never leave the Carolinas.

So when she said God wants us to come here after I had already heard that we were in complete agreement. It goes back to the we hear from God. All of us in different ways, like music and that's why I've heard from God, particularly my use but he communicates with each of us individually sometimes will be alone with him. As with Asselin sometimes he will have us with others.

The confirmation, but it takes remarkable courage. I think it it it to sit to speak up and go excuse me, I heard from God because you know that people look at you like you're not throwing events around the US. All I'm known for being a little strange, yet it actually was clip reminds me of of the Boot Camp's yeah that's one of the places where I personally learn to be still and listen to ask the question as Jim is talking about prayer. It's asking a question and being still long enough actually hear God speak to you and sometimes we don't always talk about what he shares with us right. Some things are just rest in summer for others in their times to reveal in times not talk about not giving your pearls before the swine he's talking about those pearls of revelation that he gives you. And there definitely times for sharing that because it encourages those around you if it we talked about earlier where it it other people see what God's doing and how he's talking to you and they realize that I can hear from them to. It's not. There's nothing special about me. It's all God and he wants with that relationship and intimacy with each one of us and intimacy is the is the beauty of what I feel like is prayer and you know, as I mentioned at the beginning of the shower four days out from Valentine's day and so you know we would be remiss if we didn't just speak to this little bit that ladies here a little differently than men here and we have a tendency not only to figure out where we fit into the picture, but sometimes we want to fix stuff Ryan and and and and what they're looking for is intimacy. And so we have this little clip.

I Jim it is a little clip it is a fantastic video you have to recognize from the very beginning that this lady has a huge nail sticking out of the middle of her for head, but this is a outside of that, this is a pretty classic conversation between a male and a female yet if you got a picture this nail sticking out of the middle of her forehead and the conversation that results pressure now and sometimes it feels like it's on me and I can just feel it like literally file in my hat in its relentless thing that scares me most is that I don't know if it's ever going to stop. You do have nail your head.

Are you sure because if we get that out there trying to fix it. I'm not trying to fix it. I'm just pointing out maybe the nail is because you always do this you just see I don't think that is what you need to think what you need is to get the nail. Okay fine I will listen fine like this very well at all, sweaters are snagged sounds really hard on you would just go over her. She reached over to kiss him. After a moment of intimacy were actually he allowed himself to get in there and feel her pain, which is actually what she was going for was the intimacy not necessarily to fix the situation and that connected with the nail and it hurt and he was ready to go right back to the let speak and so I would be completely remiss if I didn't tell the audience of what I play backlit for my wife last night she was like I need to go on the radio and tell him how to Christian carb diet needs to listen to is what and I couldn't help but think Raymond said where you get off Leslie. It is the hardest thing we do in life really is connect and that's done through listening through sharing opening up the relationship with God is the same way. He knows everything about us. We don't have to pray as an ask what we need because he knows what we will give it to us what he wants that because he wants the relationship he wants to be with this and show himself to us and it's it's got a what she say no fix that we were asking to fix it but he just wants to be there with us and I wish everybody listening could've seen my friend Wayne's eyes earlier tonight. I could see the enthusiasm as God can touch a place in you that only he can touch and and it's through this type in us. He rightly yes my word is actually intimacy that was the word before the beginning of the year and I get so excited I want to share. I want others to know his love is this the thing that he showed me and then and I just will be able to touch people and show them the experience his presence to experience that peace that the shame that all of the stuff to lift off into the know that there is no condemnation in them, and he looks at you and sees you as a son and MN. Part of what you've experienced since you know you begin this this quest is you get to hear him more. And the more you hear more. You get to hear the Martinelli to him who has, more will be given, and yet you're really experiencing that in the seas requires faith and that's what is teaching me is to walk by faith not by sight. Some of the things he shared with me have required me to do things out of my comfort zone. We talked about the last week and stepping out and talking to people. I would normally talk to him.

It had lunch with a friend yesterday and sure enough it happened. There in that moment after talking with with my friend we realized it wasn't for me it was for him is for him to see the possibility God. I like Jim it was your password so you have to last for tell us what you're saying what I want to do is tell you that there is hope your man hard.

I have two reactions. One of the other, sometimes both. When I know I've heard God I either bawled like a baby or I and it is about passed out really living and experiencing God thou now I feel better that you listed masculine journey radio.org