Can anyone hear me?

So youve made the first step.
For too long you cried out in vain.
No one seemed to understand.
No matter how loud you shouted, it seemed like no one could hear you.
But then, through the silence, and through your pain and confusion, a thought crossed your mind.
What about God?
Is he able to hear me?
No one else seems to.

Youre afraid.
Afraid that if you try to talk to this God, he too might not hear you.
Afraid that your voice would get lost in the millions of other voices all crying out to be heard.
But then you realise... what have you got to lose?
So you take that first step.
You give this unseen God a chance.
You lift your eyes to the heavens, you open your mouth, and the words just come tumbling out.
Strangely, you know youve been heard.
Youve always been heard. By him.

So you ask him.
Why do I feel like this?
What am I doing on this earth?
What should I do with my life?
How can I make it better?

You know he heard.
So you wait.
And wait.
And wait. *pause*
But theres no answer.
You start to doubt... did he really hear you?
Why isnt he answering you?

How many of you have felt like this before?
I know I have.
Last night, Nat told you about a God who listens to the cries of the people on earth. A God who loves you, and wants the best for you, and is always there to listen to you.
And maybe this isnt the first time youve heard about God.
Perhaps somehow in your heart, youve always known that hes there.
But you cant seem to figure out where God fits in your life.Youve heard of this God, but youve never heard from him.
I remember one of the frustrations I used to have as a kid growing up in church.
God was all around me! I heard about him from my parents, the aunties and uncles, the teachers, and even my friends. But he had never spoken to me...I had never experienced him. I knew of him, but I didnt know who he was!

I know a lot of you probably feel the same way.
Maybe a friend has told you about his wonderful experience with God. He tells you about how God has worked in his life, changed his life, given him peace.
Maybe youve heard of miracles happening to people, or prayers that have been answered, or hearts that have been healed.
But its never happened to you.
How come you seem to be the only person who cannot hear God?
Who has not experienced God?
Why?

Let me tell you a story from the bible.
Long ago, there lived a man named Elijah.
The name Elijah means Jehovah is my God
Jehovah was the proper name for the one true God back then, meaning The existing one. Now Elijah was something we call a prophet. A prophet did many things.
But among them, he was also Gods spokesperson carrying messages from God to people, and he performed miracles from God, and even predicted events in the future.

Our story begins in a place called Samaria, where Elijah goes to see the King of Israel, King Ahab, to deliver a message from God. Ahab was a very bad king. He had turned Israel away from God, by making them worship an idol called Baal. Baal was supposed to be the god of rain and fertility. So Elijahs message from God to King Ahab was that there would not be a single drop of rain or even dew for several years, until God said so.

This was a challenge: Did Baal really control the rain? Or was it God?
True enough, there was a severe drought, and finally, 3 years later, God sent Elijah to tell King Ahab that he would soon send rain again.He then summoned all the people of Israel, and all the prophets of Baal to meet him on the mountain Carmel for a showdown.

How long will you waver between 2 opinions? He asked the people. If the Lord is God, follow him! But if Baal is God, then follow him!

Picture this:
450 prophets of Baal, versus 1 prophet of God.
The competition? 2 sacrifices of young bulls were placed on altars. One altar for God, one altar for Baal. However, neither side was allowed to burn the wood on the altar. Instead, the prophets were to pray to their gods, and Elijah to Jehovah, and whichever god sent fire to light the wood would be determined to be the true God.

So the prophets of Baal went first.
They called to Baal all morning, O Baal, hear us!
No reply.
They danced around the altar and shouted louder and louder.
They cut themselves with knives and swords, and raved all afternoon until evening.
But still, no answer. No reply. No voice. No fire.
Then Elijah called the people over to his altar.
He repaired the altar of God that had been torn down, dug a trench about 3 feet wide around the altar. He prepared the young bull for sacrifice on wood on the altar, and then called for 4 barrels of water to be poured over the sacrifice and the wood.3 times they poured water over the sacrifice on the altar, until the water ran off the altar and filled the trench.

Then Elijah walked up to the altar and prayed, O Lord, answer me! Answer me so these people will know that you are God, and that you have brought them back to yourself!

Suddenly, fire flashed down from heaven and burned up the sacrifice of the young bull, the wood, the stones, the dust, and even evaporated all the water in the ditch!

When the people saw this, they fell to the ground and shouted, Jehovah is God! Jehovah is God!

Not long after, God opened up the skies, and rain came pouring to the earth for the first time in 3 years.

God had spoken.

The people recognised that Jehovah was the true God.
But with victory came great danger for Elijah.
King Ahabs wife, Queen Jezebel was very angry with the defeat, and sent a message to Elijah that she was going to kill him.

So Elijah ran for his life.
He travelled all day by himself in the desert. Finally, exhausted and depressed, he sat under a tree and prayed that he might die.He then fell asleep under the tree, but was awakened by an angel who fed him and gave him water. With renewed strength, he travelled 40 days and 40 nights to Mount Horeb, the mountain of God, where he lived in a cave.

Lets read from the bible: (1 Kings 19:11-12a)

Go out and stand before me on the mountain, the Lord told him. And as Elijah stood there the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain; it was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the Lord was not in the wind.
After the wind, there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake.
And after the earthquake, there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire.

Whats going on here?
Didnt God just tell Elijah to find him? Why didnt God show himself then?
Can you imagine how Elijah must have felt?
Alone, tired, depressed... and now, he could not even find God.

Why didnt God appear to Elijah in the earthquake, or the wind, or even the fire, (just like before)?
Why didnt God answer?

We left Elijah standing all alone on a mountain.
Looking for God.
Crying out to him.
Knowing that somehow God had heard him.
Yet, he could not find God.
Elijah did not find God in the great wind.
He did not find God in the earthquake.
He did not even find God in the fire.
Hed travelled 40 days and 40 nights to get to Gods mountain, and God wasnt even there? Why didnt God answer?

After the fire, in the still... in the silence... there came a gentle whisper.
And Elijah recognised this was Gods voice.

God did speak to Elijah. Just not in the way he expected.

Maybe thats the problem with us.
Were always waiting for some great miracle, or lightning bolt... some earth-shattering experience where God will reveal himself, and speak to us.
Were so busy waiting for the big signs, that we miss his gentle whisper!
Were so caught up in trying to hear Gods voice that weve neglected to learn how to listen.

Our theme is Can Anyone Hear Me?
You know something, it takes skill to listen. And were not the only ones trying to be heard. God wants us to learn how to hear him too.
It isnt that God doesnt speak to us. Rather, we havent learned how to hear him.

There are many ways to hear God.
Lets look at a few.

1. Through a Letter:
This book I hold in my hand is full of Gods voice. We call it the bible.
In the bible, youll find stories about people in similar situations as you, and how God directed their lives. Stories of people like Elijah. Youll find yourself empathising with some of the characters in the bible. They too were often lonely, confused, angry or sad.

You can also find many words of wisdom in the bible. For example, An honest answer is like a kiss on the lips. Pro24:26.

God reassures us of his presence in our lives: Before they call I will answer, while they are still speaking I will hear. Isa 65:24.

In fact, God himself tells us what he is like in the bible: For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16.
2. Through Messengers:
Sometimes God speaks indirectly to us.
Elijah was a person who delivered messages from God to his people.
God still communicates to us through other people.
Maybe youve had an experience where just at the point where you needed someone there the most, a friend calls you out of the blue.
That was no accident.

Or perhaps youve made some big mistakes in your past, and looking back, you think, oh, if only Id listened to my parents...God speaks through our parents.

Ever wonder what a pastors job is?
Thats right. Hes Gods messenger. Every week, at church, he delivers Gods message to you and I.

And what about the fact that you are here right now, listening to this message?
I am Gods messenger. And this is his message to you.
Are you listening?

3. Through Big Fire Bolts:
Sometimes God does send us big signs to direct our lives. Just like how he sent that bolt of fire down from heaven. The funny thing about big signs, however, is that you can actually still miss them! Going back to the story of Elijah after fire from heaven consumed the sacrifice to Jehovah, the people proclaimed that he was God, but still, King Ahab and Queen Jezebel refused to believe.
Are we sometimes so stubborn that despite getting burned again and again, we still dont realise that Gods trying to teach us a lesson?

4. Through Silence:
You wake up to the sound your alarm clock. You turn on the radio to help you stay awake while you get ready to go to school. You walk out of the house and immediately, youre blasted the sound of passing traffic. You reach school, everywhere theres noise- people talking, chairs scraping, doors slamming... You come home,turn on the TV, or the radio, pop your latest buy into the cd player, or talk to a friend on the phone...
Were constantly surrounded by loud noises. All vying for our attention.
Perhaps the only time we welcome silence is when were asleep.

You know the term uncomfortable silence?
Whats so uncomfortable about it?
Why is silence so hard to deal with?
Face it, most of us are not used to peace and quiet. Were not used to being alone with out thoughts. Were afraid that in the silence, our thoughts might eat us up alive!

But God speaks to us when we are silent.
Have you ever tried listening to a friend at the same time as talking to him/her?
Thats not communication! Communicating requires a 2-way street.
In the same way, we can pray to God to talk to him, but we also need to be silent to hear him.

5. Through Knowing Him:
Ive given you a lot to think about now.
But if you walk away tonight and forget practically everything thats happened here.
Please... remember just this one thing:
Get to know GOD.

Thats all its about a personal, intimate relationship with God.
Jehovah the one true God, is a God of relationships.
A God who is waiting for you to open up to him, to talk to him, to cry out to him.
A God who loves you so much, he did more than just die for you.
A God who can turn your life around, give you peace in your confusion.
A God who can help you become who you were born to be.

What is the bible, Gods letter for? To help you find out who God is!
What do his messengers do? We remind you of your need to know this God!
Why do big signs happen? Because God is reaching out to you!
What can you hear in the silence? God speaking to you!

If you want to know how to hear God, you need to discover who God is. Because how could you possibly recognise someones voice, if you dont know who that person is?

So you see, God has been calling out to you, trying to get you to hear him all along.
You probably have heard him before.
You just didnt recognise him then.
Can anyone hear me? He asks.
You hear him.
Now, are you listening carefully?