Church Rewal Pt 1 Series

Tune in to God! Don’t Tune Out!

Opening Illustration: Have the audience tune into the FM station we are broadcasting on for the service.

“Say – Can you hear – can you hear me now!”

Mega phone Illustration: Have different kinds of mega phones to show how some work better than others.

Thesis: We need to make sure our radio is tuned to God. Samuel tuned into God while Eli tuned God out. We also need to hear the voice of God over other voices that are speaking to us each day! It’s all about tuning into God’s frequency!

Illustration:

There is one interview with a pro football player that stands out in my mind as we think of tuning into God. This player tells a sports reporter why he chose to go to a certain city to play ball. He was honest enough to say that God spoke to him and he responded back with the truth “I talk to God and He talks back!”.

The interviewee was Reggie White, who at that time had just completed the

terms of his contract with the Philadelphia Eagles, where he had made the

All-star team almost every year since he became a professional. After his

contract with Philadelphia had been fulfilled, White, who is also an ordained

minister – hence his nickname, "The Minister of Defense" – had been free to

sign with any team he wished. And he had several offers that would have

made him a very rich man. But when decision time came, White shocked

most football observers and many of his friends by signing with the team

which was located in the smallest city of all the National Football League

franchises – the Green Bay Packers. The reporter who was conducting the

interview asked White how he had reached his decision to play for the

Packers. I will not soon forget what White said next. "I spent a lot of time praying

about this," White said. "And one day as I prayed, I heard God say, ‘Reggie,

go to Green Bay.’ So that’s what I did."

White saw something in the way the interviewer looked at

him at that point because White said this: "You know, when you tell

people you’ve been talking to God, they don’t have a problem with that.

That’s praying. If you believe in that sort of thing, it’s okay. But when you

say that God talked to YOU, then they think you’re crazy or something! Isn’t

prayer supposed to be a conversation with God? And in a conversation, don’t

BOTH parties talk?" (Illustration from Scott Hippler, Sermoncentral)

Introduction:

Throughout the Bible you will find men and women who share their story of how God spoke to them. The key to hearing the voice of the Lord had to do with the willingness of that individual to tune into God’s voice on the radio of life. There are also instances in the Bible when the individual tuned God out. These individuals did not want to listen to what God was telling them so they changed the station. It’s important in our life that we tune into God and not tune God out.

Prop. – Radio on podium to make point. Play with the station. Tuning it in and tuning it out!

Personal Story: Tuning into God – hearing his voice above the others – Call to ministry and going to Bible College – Call to Grygla – Call to Sandhill Lake Bible camp vision of Jesus – “I am calling you back to pastoring!” – the call to CHC as associate – The call to New life in Amery – The call back to CHC as Lead pastor. How I learned to discern His voice above the others.

Let’s take a look at a person in the Bible who learned to tune into God and recognize his voice. This individual was only about 12 years old when he learned this important lesson – tune God in - listen – respond to him – obey his voice – and grow into a informed Christian person – then we will be blessed and really live!

We can say that there once were two men of God one became God’s honorable spokesman because he tuned into God were as the other one tuned God out and paid the price of his actions and died in dishonor. The two: Eli the fallen priest and Samuel the Prophet of God. Man of dishonor and man of honor. One man a failure the other man successful. One finished poorly the other finished strong.

Why? One learned to listen to God throughout His life the other tuned God out of His life!

Texts:

1 Samuel 2:12

“Eli’s sons were wicked men; they had no regard for the Lord.”

The problem of why no one hearing God’s voice in this day!