How To Hear From God | Through Others | Drew Sherman

Singing. I got the joy. I got the joy along to down the side of my soul and knocking at it no more. I got to breathe. I got the joy of the Lord to down the side of my soul and I can't hide it no more. I got to breathe. All I need is blood, my chains and blood, my freedom. And what else can I say but give it to the 'Cause you're just that guy, just that faithful and you're just that guy. I'm so grateful that you saved my life like you said you were. So if I have the power, part of it in a faith of power, sing in a dance because you saved my life like you said you were. 'Cause you're just that guy. Put a song in my heart and sing with all that I got until the world you are in that faith. Put a song in my heart and sing with all that I got until the world you are in that faith. What I need is blood, my chains and blood, my freedom. And what else can I say but give it to Jesus? 'Cause you're just that guy, just that faithful and you're just that guy. I'm so grateful that you saved my life like you said you were. So if I have the power, part of it in a faith of power, sing in a dance because you saved my life like you said you were. 'Cause you're just 'cause you're just that guy. So what do you want, my chains and blood, my freedom? And what else can I say but give it to Jesus? To what do you want, my chains and blood, my freedom? And what else can I say but give it to Jesus? 'Cause you're just that guy, just that faithful and you're just that guy. I'm so grateful that you saved my life like you said you were. So if I hear yourself, part of it in a faith of power, sing in a dance because you saved my life like you said you were. 'Cause you're just 'cause you're just that guy. 'Cause you're just 'cause you're just that guy. When I was lost and all alone, your presence was where I found home. You were there and you're here right now. In every heart, in every low, you never loved me without hope. You were good and you're good right now. Sing this alphabet. And I witnessed your faithfulness. I've seen you breathe life within. So I'm for all my praise again. You're worthy. God, you're worthy of all of it. Your promise is never filled.

I've got stories I lift you to. So I'm for all my praise again. You're worthy. God, you're worthy of all of it. You left the throne and chose a cross laid down your life to rescue us. Let's save you there and save your own life. ♪ But even that was not the end ♪ ♪ You conquered hell so I could live ♪ ♪ Resurrecting that, Resurrecting now ♪ ♪ Resurrecting that, Resurrecting now ♪ ♪ Resurrecting that, Resurrecting now ♪ ♪ Now witness your faithfulness ♪ ♪ Your faithfulness ♪ ♪ I've seen you be life with it ♪ ♪ So I'll pour out my praise again ♪ ♪ You're worthy ♪ ♪ God, you're worthy of all the way ♪ ♪ And your promises never fade ♪ ♪ I've got stories I need you to do ♪ ♪ So I'll pour out my praise again ♪ ♪ You're worthy, God, you're worthy of all the way ♪ ♪ And you're worthy of all the way ♪ ♪ And you're worthy of all the way ♪ ♪ And you're worthy of all the way ♪ ♪ And you're worthy of all the way ♪ ♪ And you're worthy of all the way ♪ ♪ Your cause that I witnessed it ♪ ♪ And I'm confident ♪ ♪ I'll see you again and again ♪ ♪ You love and I witnessed it ♪ ♪ And you hear that I witnessed it ♪ ♪ You say that I witnessed it ♪ ♪ And I'm confident ♪ ♪ I'll see you again and again ♪

♪ I witnessed your faithfulness ♪ ♪ And I've seen you breathe life with it ♪ ♪ So I'll pour out my praise again ♪ ♪ You're worthy, God, you're worthy of all the way ♪ ♪ Your promises never fade ♪ ♪ I've got stories I live to do ♪ ♪ So I'll pour out my praise again ♪ ♪ You're worthy, God, you're worthy of all the way ♪ Yes, Jesus, thank you so much for who you are. We thank you that in your presence, there's healing, there's hope, there's freedom, there's redemption. Jesus, we just want to live through your name above every other name. We love you Lord. We just want to worship you and glorify you. We exalt you today. Thank you, Jesus. ♪ I could see your name for all my life ♪ ♪ And still find more to love each time ♪ ♪ That Jesus be the name of her own lives ♪ ♪ It's sweeter at the time that I call home ♪ ♪ There's just something 'bout your name ♪ ♪ There's just something 'bout your name ♪ ♪ There's just something 'bout your name ♪ ♪ That makes me cry for only ♪ ♪ There is no other name ♪ ♪ There is no other name ♪ ♪ There is no other name ♪ ♪ Jesus, you're worthy ♪ ♪ You have been the friend ♪ ♪ Who never left ♪ ♪ I won't forget your faithful lives ♪

♪ Jesus be the name of her own lives ♪ ♪ It's sweeter at the time that I call home ♪ ♪ If you want me to see you ♪ ♪ There's just something 'bout your name ♪ ♪ There's just something 'bout your name ♪ ♪ There's just something 'bout your name ♪ ♪ That makes me cry for only ♪ ♪ There is no other name I know ♪ ♪ There is no other name ♪ ♪ There is no other name ♪ ♪ Jesus, you're worthy ♪ ♪ You are worthy ♪ (upbeat music) ♪ Wigs won't you name Jesus ♪ ♪ Oh, Jesus, your name is like the Lord in life ♪ ♪ The one in darkness can't deny ♪ ♪ The resurrection and the life ♪ ♪ Jesus, Jesus, your name ♪ ♪ Your name, your name, your name, your name ♪ ♪ Storm is still ♪ ♪ You never fail, you never will ♪ ♪ Jesus, Jesus, the bread of life ♪ ♪ Broken for us ♪ ♪ The wounds in the world you want ♪ ♪ The first and last are still to come ♪ ♪ Jesus, Jesus, the King ♪ ♪ Oh, the world will break ♪ ♪ The Lord will forever break ♪ ♪ The name will go for the name ♪ ♪ Jesus, Jesus, be the name ♪

♪ Jesus, be the name ♪ ♪ Jesus, be the name ♪ ♪ They can't solve the glory yet ♪ ♪ Jesus, be the name ♪ ♪ Jesus, be the name ♪ ♪ Jesus, be the name ♪ ♪ They can't solve the glory yet ♪ ♪ There is no one in me ♪ ♪ There is no one in me ♪ ♪ There is no one in me ♪ ♪ Jesus, your word, your dream ♪ ♪ There is no other name I know ♪ ♪ There is no other name ♪ ♪ There is no other name ♪ ♪ Jesus, your word, your dream ♪ (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) ♪ Jesus, your word, your dream ♪ ♪ Jesus, your word, your dream ♪ (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) ♪ Jesus, your word, your dream ♪ (audience applauding) - Well, hey, welcome to Compass. Our mission is navigating people to God. And how you doing, 10 o'clock, you're good? (audience applauding) A little delayed there, okay, all right.

Just kind of gauging the audience here today. Hey, I'm excited about Baptism Weekend. I hope that you're excited about next weekend as well. It's one of the best times in the life on our calendar year here at Compass. And just love being a part of that. And look, maybe you're hearing from God on this. Maybe you wanna be a part of this. I'm gonna mention this later in the message, but I would love to connect with you at that table, the Baptism kiosk right in the middle of the lobby, right after this message and answer any questions you might have. We've got classes available, lots of opportunities to find out about this amazing weekend. So one week from today, I hope you're here and I hope you're able to really celebrate with us, the people that are going to be having the courage to make this decision. For some of you, it's your next step. And I hope that you will pray about the opportunity that is before you. And today, it's been amazing already. We had one of our teenage boys, our high school students, baptized his father this morning at 8.30, an amazing moment. And so, just incredible. And I wanna encourage you to be a part of that. I also want you to put another date on your calendar,

September 20th, amazing date, amazing night, called Vision Night. And I just wanna say this, our church is about to turn 60 in October. We're gonna turn 60 years old as a church. I know that because I'm the same age as the church. And in 13 days, I'm gonna turn 60. night on September 20th. And I will share this promises to be an amazing night. There'll be some worship, but I'm also going to share more about the future of our church on that night than any other single moment in history. And so I hope that you will put that on your calendar. If you love compass, you need to be here that night. You do need RSVP. So we have a seat for you. So hit that QR code up and let us know that you're coming. It's a huge night, a big night. All right, let me pray over you right now as we get started. Father, we want to hear from you today. We are here to hear from you today. And so I pray that any obstacles from that beforted. And I pray God that you would listen, that we would listen to your voice today and your voice alone. We pray it all in Jesus name. Amen. Have you ever noticed that some voices carry more weight in life than others? I mean, there are certain people who can say one sentence. And because of who they are, and because of the trust they've built, you lean in a little closer. Like they have your attention. Michelle and I've been married for 39 years and we've known each other for 43 years. So let me say it this way. Her voice has earned the right to be heard in my life, her advice and her encouragement, her coaching, and even her gentle corrections have been worth listening to for more than four decades. And I can honestly say my life is better when I pay

attention to her voice. Now, if I could change one thing about my wife, here comes, I would try and improve her skills as a directional speaker. My wife speaks in very soft tones and she says important things to me all the time with her back to me. While she's walking out of the room without raising her voice at all, she'll say things like, the gas company was here today. They said there's a toxic leak in the, and we need to be careful. What? Wait, wait, what did you just say? And there's always a calendar reminder where we have this fire. Well, she'd be like, remember, we're having dinner with the moppins in an hour. And I'm like, when did you tell me that? And she's like, Monday, when I whispered into the mailbox in our front yard. How would I know these things? And so I, we're in a series we're calling how to hear from God. And we're learning that God communicates to us in a variety of ways. And we want to hear his voice clearly. And so last week we learned the clearest way to hear from God is through the Bible. And we challenged everyone to choose a Bible translation they can understand and choose a consistent time in a place and use a Bible reading plan and pray and ask God to show you one thing to apply. And then take, we said, take the next step disciples move. They take steps. They take the next step. If you're a disciple, if you're a Christ follower, if you love the Lord, you should be moving. You should be taking steps. You should take the next step in your faith, whatever that looks like. And the big idea for this series might be this, God wants you to hear his voice even more than you desire to hear it. And today I want you to realize that God can and will regularly speak to you through people. This is actually the most common way God speaks to us. In fact, even the Bible, the clearest way that God speaks to us was written by

people whom God spoke through prophets and preachers and singers and teachers and songwriters and parents and mentors and coaches and friends and even through children. These are all the ways that God speaks through people daily, or let me put it this way, that God designed every earthly relationship with the potential to be his mouthpiece into our lives. Now I say potential because some voices in life are not the voices of wisdom. Not every voice in your life is worth hearing. Okay, that golf buddy might not be a guy you need to pay attention to. But some voices are foolish and we have to recognize that. Proverbs 12 15 says, the way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advice. Have you ever looked back and wished you had listened to the wise Godly people in your life instead of pushing ahead with what you wanted to do? I wonder how much heartache I could have avoided. How many sins and regrets I might have been spared if I had been humble enough to listen. Maybe someone told you not to date him. But you did and every day you wish credit card, and now you're in a financial hole that you're not sure how you're going to be able to dig out of. Maybe it was a business partnership that others warned you about working with that person, but you ignored the warning and the fallout has been costly. Today I want to help you dial in on the frequency of each voice to hear what God may be saying to you. And to help us, we're going to look at an Old Testament story that was written at a pivotal time in the nation of Israel. The prime minister of Israel has been kind of in the news a lot in the last year or so, but if you went back to Bible days, they didn't have prime ministers, they had kings. The first king was a man named Saul, and then came King David, who was regard and revered as maybe the greatest king in the history of Israel.

And then David son Solomon was the wisest of all the kings, and then Solomon son, Raya Bowen came and spoiler alert, Raya Bowen will make some unwise decisions that will fracture Israel forever. His father, King Solomon had excessively taxed the people, and this was a time when the nation of Israel was rolling in the dough. There was a saying silver was considered worthless in Solomon's day. And he had forced their citizens to build temples and palaces. So as we enter into the story, you find that transition of leadership was a welcome change for the people of Israel. And the coronation day came for Raya Bowen, and there's a huge crowd gathered to witness this historic moment. The fourth king of Israel is being crowned, and then something unexpected happens. The people make a request of the new king. This was not normal. You can dial in here with me, first Kings 12, if you have your Bibles, first Kings, chapter 12, or if you want to get to you version on your smartphone. They say your father put a heavy yoke on us, but now lighten the harsh labor and the heavy yoke he put on us, and we will serve you. And Raya Bowen answered, "Go away for three days and then come back to me." So the people went away. You see, Solomon was a wise and powerful king, but wow did he work his people hard. They built a temple and a bunch of palaces. These buildings were amazing, but basically he enslaved a good part of the population and taxed them beyond what they could bear. And now they're coming to the new king and saying, "Give us a break." And I want to make a couple of observations if you're taking notes from this story that teaches some powerful lessons on how to listen to the right voices in life. Observation number one, pursue Godly wisdom from others who can be of help. Pursue Godly wisdom from other people who can be of help. That's what Raya Bowen is about to do.

I want to be very careful in my wording here. I said pursue wisdom, not knowledge. There's a difference. If you want knowledge, ask AI. There's a lot of knowledge out there. If you want wisdom, open your Bible and seek advisors who are familiar with its teachings. Verse 12, verse 6, "Then King Raya Bowen consulted the elders who had served his father Solomon during his lifetime. How would you advise me to answer these people? He's off to a great start. This is great. "Hey guys, what do you think I should do here?" They replied. "Today you'll be a servant to these people and serve them and give them a favorable answer. They will always be your servants." Again, wonderful advice back. "Hey, Raya Bowen, be a servant leader." Look, that's great advice for me as a pastor. If I'm a servant leader, people will be compelled to follow and ultimately follow Jesus because of it. He's just great advice back, then verse 8, "But Raya Bowen rejected the advice the elders gave him and consulted instead the young men who had grown up with him and were serving him." He's like, "What do these old baby boomers know? They don't know anything. I'm going to go, 'Hey, how are my millennial friends?' There'll be a lot of wisdom in that tank, right?" He gets their input. He doesn't like what he hears and he seeks other advice. But notice what happened in his heart before it ever showed up in his decision.

He wasn't really asking for wisdom as much as he was shopping agreement. And that's a dangerous place to be because when your mind is already made up, even God the counsel can start to sound like an inconvenience. Save yourself a step in the process. Raya Bowman knows where to go and who to ask. He just discounts their wisdom and experience and is going to ask his own peers that are of the same generation, verse 10. The young men who had grown up with him replied, these people have said to you, your father put a heavy yoke on us, but make our yoke lighter. Now tell them my little fingers thicker than my father's waist. My father laid on you a heavy yoke. I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips. I will scourge you with scorpions. I don't even know what that means, but it doesn't sound very pleasant. They basically begin to trash talk. That's their advice. Let's trash talk these wimps, right? Let's tell them who the king is. Let's show them there's a new sheriff in town. Observation number three. You can always find a fool to support your folly always. You can always find a fool to support your folly. In the book of Proverbs, a fool with someone who disregarded wise teaching and was doing things their own way, Proverbs 18, verse two, fools find no pleasure in understanding, but delight in airing their own opinions. There will always be someone who will be supportive and sympathetic to your unwise agenda. If you want to justify your partying or you're drinking too much, you know who to ask, you know who to go to.

If you want to rationalize the websites you visit, you can probably find someone who help you believe that what happens in private has no consequences. If you want to justify your overspinning, ask Susie's opinion. Susie knows the Amazon Prime driver better than her own kids. There is always someone out there who will support your folly. There's always someone willing to help you justify what wisdom is trying to warn you against, usually because they're walking the same road and don't want to be challenged. Here's a thought. Don't hang out with those people. Don't be like Raya Bowen, verse 13. The King answered the people harshly rejecting the advice given him by the elders. He followed the advice of the young men. This doesn't mean, by the way, that young people can't give good advice. But in this case, they did not. So Raya Bowen sought wise counsel. He received wise counsel. He just chose not to take it. And verse 16 tells us that people had had enough when they realized Raya Bowen wasn't going to listen, wasn't going to lighten the load, wasn't going to serve them. They basically said, we're done, we're out. We're not following this guy. And just like that, the majority of Israel broke away and formed their own kingdom. You study Old Testament history. You'll notice a northern kingdom develops and a southern kingdom. And they are at civil war from that point on this one decision by Raya Bowen, when he refused to listen to wise counsel, it cost the nation of Israel division for 200 years, hostility, division, heartache, because one leader chose self validation over wisdom.

I travel from time to time. I spend a little bit of time on airplanes. And one thing I've noticed is that you can tell pretty quickly whether the person next to you wants to talk. It's pretty quick. Sometimes you try, I like to try to break the ice. Not nothing major, just, you know, just so it doesn't feel awkward. But a lot of people make their answer clear before you ever say a word. The moment they sit down, outcome, the high quality noise canceling headphones. And that's not just a listening device. That's a boundary. Amen. That just basically says, I do not want to talk and I get it, right? It's their way of saying, look, the Lord may speak to you through people, but not through me and see 14 B. And the truth is some of us do that spiritually. We put on the spiritual version of noise canceling headphones. We block out the voices that challenge us, correct us, slow us down or tell us something that we don't want to hear. And if we're not careful, we don't just block out people. We may be blocking out one of the primary ways that God is trying to speak to us. That's exactly what Raya Bohm does. Fourth observation. It's difficult to hear from God when you block out the godly mouthpieces around you. It's difficult to hear from God when you block out the godly mouthpieces around you. Raya Bohm made it about himself and his desires. And so he tuned into those. You see it in the church. You start to feel uncomfortable when the pastor or a message starts to look at sexuality differently than what the culture has been force feeding you.

So you go to another church that preaches what you want to hear. And we allow the noise of a carnal culture to drown out the whispers of the omniscient God. Verse 10 verse 31, the mouth of the godly person gives wise advice. The question is, will you take time to listen? You see, we need people around us who are not afraid to speak the hard truth to us, but to do it in love. I picked up a book that I've seen before, but I've always been afraid to read it because it's going to challenge my intellect, right? And so I picked up a book. It's just called Confessions, and it was written by Augustine. And Augustine lived around 400 AD, about 400 years after the life of Jesus. And so this is a very ancient writing, and so they've kind of tried to put all the writings into modern day thinking, and so here was a quote that just wrecked me by Augustine. He said, "My sin was all the more incurable because I did not think myself a sinner." So Augustine had a blind spot, and he never regarded himself as somebody who was fallen. And I read that, and I really long for you to experience God's grace in your life because I have people in my life that are willing to point out sin in my life, or when they feel like I'm a little off. And I really long for you to experience God's grace like that. I really long for you to know what it's like to no longer live with guilt and shame. But that means acknowledging that you, like me, are a person who is capable of sin. And this is hard for us because we would rather minimize sin or rationalize sin or quite honestly blame someone else, or honestly maybe even worse, do it so often that we just kind of take advantage of it. Yeah, I'm a sinner, that's just who I am. Those feelings and occurrences are less likely if you have godly advisors around you because sometimes the thing that could save us from the greatest regret is one godly person who loves us enough to tell us the truth. Who are you listening to?

Who are you getting input from? I'm serious when I say this could affect the rest of your life. Who you decide to listen to can be the most important decision of your whole life. Some people say, yeah, I just don't have any godly friends or anyone else to help me or counsel me. I don't buy it. You could. Let me ask you, are you in a community group here at Compass? Look, I know groups aren't for everybody and some of you are going to, you're just going to, you're not going to listen, but you hear us talk about groups all the time from this platform and there's a reason for that. We really do believe they're good for your spiritual health and your emotional health and your marriage and your parenting and your ability to hear god through the right people. Michelle and I are in community group with couples in their 20s, their 30s and their 40s and then there's us. We're the seasoned couple. That's what I would call us. I would like to point out that I'm still in my 50s for another 13 days. September 5th is my birthday, if you want to write that down. I'm just kidding. Shame was plugged there. And honestly, that makes us one of the gifts of the group. Some couples are in their early years of marriage learning how to build rhythm, communicate well, figure out life, some are parenting babies and toddlers, just trying to survive bedtime and remember what sleep fells like. Some are raising teenagers and navigating schedules and attitudes and decisions and dating and discipline and smells. And then Michelle and I are a little farther down the road. We've raised kids, we've walked through different seasons of marriage.

We've made some mistakes, we've learned some lessons. I feel like oftentimes we're passing on pains that we've learned, you know, stuff that we've done wrong. So there are moments when we get to encourage them from experience, but there's also moments when they encourage us. And it's just a beautiful community that's been formed. It's not just one generation talking down to another. It's people in different seasons of life making themselves available to each other so wisdom can be shared and burdens can be carried and prayers can be offered. I love what the writer of Hebrews says in Hebrews chapter 12, Hebrews 12 verse one. Paul is, we believe it's Paul who is writing this and he's comparing the Christian life to a race and how you're running the race. But I think we kind of neglect that first part often because he says, therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles and let us run with perseverance, the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus. How are we able to stay fixing our eyes on Jesus because we have a great cloud of witnesses. We have people in our life and we can listen to the voice of Godly people. And I just wanna ask you today, like, man, who is in your cloud? Like, who do you have cheering you on as you run the Christian race? Who is in your life to give you biblical advice

and Godly counsel and provide healthy mentoring? Who's in your circle? Because there are times when you just need to know that you are not alone and you allow God's voice to come through at times as the spirit moves in the lives of those around you. And the truth is Godly people can be a megaphone for hearing God's will. And we have to remember that. And God may speak loudly through the spirit and he hopefully will speak clearly through the scripture, but sometimes he speaks practically through the wisdom of people who love him and love you. Proverbs 11, verse 14, for lack of guidance and nation falls, but victory is won through many advisors. And I can tell you from experience, this has been absolutely true in my own life. In fact, it's one of the reasons I'm standing before you today. 24 years ago, back in 2002, Michelle and I were in one of those seasons where we were praying and trying to listen to God and kind of discern next steps in our ministry chapter. And I believe God was stirring in my heart for me to serve as a lead pastor. I really wanted to preach and I wasn't sure how to go about it. So I did what I hope many of us would do when we're facing a major decision. I reached out to a godly voice that I trusted.

I called Ken Eidelman. Ken had been the president of Ozark Christian College where I graduated back in 1988 and the school is still really near and dear to my heart. And I told Ken, I really feel like God may be leading me to lead a church. I'm just not sure where. And Ken said, "Forwards, it's become, these four words have become amazing to me. I love it when I hear them. You hear them often when God's about to move." He said, "Drew, it just so happens." I love that. It just so happens. He said, "I'm in the DFW airport right now. I just preached at a church in Colleyville, Texas called Highland Meadows Christian Church." Now that was the name of this church when I first started here. And he said, "They need a leader. And I think you'd be a good fit." And he said, "I'm gonna make a phone call in the morning and see if they'd be willing to talk with you." And I had never been to Texas. So I didn't know where Colley built Texas while I had to look it up on a map. And Ken made that phone call in the next day. The next day I heard from Bob Durr who was the chairman of the elders here at the time,

a man who's still a dear friend of mine even today. And that conversation eventually led to Michelle and I flying to Texas and spending time with some of you who are actually in this room even right now. And looking back, that one phone call became the first step in discovering what I believe has been God's plan for the rest of my life. But the decision wasn't as simple as it sounds. At the very same time, we were talking to a church in the Denver area. And to be honest, the church in Denver looked like the better deal on paper. They had just finished a new building project. They were positioned for growth. Things looked exciting and ready to take off. Highland Meadows, on the other hand, if some of you remember this, was in a very difficult season. There was some division in the church. It definitely wasn't the easiest or cleanest moment in the church's history. And as Michelle and I walk through both processes, I have to be honest, I was leaning strongly toward the church in Colorado. I thought it would be the best opportunity for me. I use those words today on purpose, not proud of it. It was best for me. Because looking back, I think I might have been of opportunity than obedience.

So on Memorial Day weekend of 2002, I found myself with two offers, one from the church in Colorado and one from this church. Highland Meadows, now compass. Michelle and I prayed fervently, but I knew I needed more than my own perspective, so I made a few phone calls to some wise voices. I called one of the most important mentors in my life, Dudley Rutherford. I had served for a decade with him out in Los Angeles at Shepherd Church. And I called Dudley and I said, what do you think? Like, which church would you choose? Dudley didn't bat an eye. He said, I would go to Texas Drew and I would never look back. And I thought, what does he know? And hung up. (audience laughing) Then I called Ken back. And Ken was a little more like, little more articulate. He said, Drew, I think it's possible that both churches could be in the permissive will of God, but if I were you, I would go to Texas. And I thought, whatever. And you know, it's interesting. I've told this story so many times

that when I was preparing for this message, it took me two and a half decades, almost 25 years to realize I wasn't searching for wisdom. I was shopping for agreement. So finally, I looked at my bride and said, sweetheart, I said to Michelle, what do you think? And Michelle said, oh, we're going to Texas. And that was pretty much the end of the conversation. So, I'm just keeping it real here. So if you're grateful that the Shermans have been part of this church for the last 24 years, the next time you see my wife, would you thank her? Because in one of the most important decisions of my life, God used her wisdom and the wisdom of godly mentors to keep me from choosing what looked like best on paper instead of what was best in his plan. And sometimes we do that, right? We go for that shiny deal that's best on paper instead of listening to godly voices in our life. Probers 15, verse 22 says, without counsel, plans fail, but with many advisors, they succeed. And I think about that often that I did a lot of things wrong in that process, but I did one thing, one thing very right. I had many advisors. What if I'd ignored those voices? What if I had dismissed Dudley and discounted Ken and talked myself out of Michelle's wisdom? 'Cause I'd already made up my mind.

I don't know everything that would have been different, but I do know this, you and I wouldn't be here today. Some of the greatest blessings in my life are on the other side of counsel that I was humble enough to receive. And I wonder what God may be trying to protect you from or lead you toward. Through the people he has already placed in your life. So here's your homework. I want you to determine who are some of the godly people that you would text or call or approach when you have a decision that is looming. Who's godly voice of experience? Would you want to hear when you're experiencing marital challenges or you have dating questions? Who would you trust when considering a career move or going out on your own? Who would you confide in and learn from when you're struggling in an area where Satan keeps getting the win? By the way, choose your circle carefully even when it comes to Christ followers. Make sure they have two things. Make sure they have it love and passion for Jesus and make sure they love you. That way they can balance the tension between grace and truth. There are a lot of truth tellers out there. Some of them like to use the Bible to shame you and guilt you, right?

And the truth is the word of God speaks just fine on its own. So your cloud should be filled with people who are pointing you to God, not crushing you with shame or using God's word against you. Their words should strengthen you and when needed, convict you with love rather than condemnation. So who's in your cloud? If you don't feel like you have anyone, what steps will you take to begin to form that team? Some of you men are coming to first Wednesdays. We got one coming up on September 2nd. It's Wednesday morning September 2nd 6 30 a.m. That's when Jesus gets up, man. You need to get up. He gets up even earlier than that. Okay. And you should be there and be a part of that. But maybe it's as simple as starting a gaining ground group where you just can think of two other dudes who love you and love Jesus form a GG group. Doesn't have to be complicated. But start your circle. Start your cloud. You don't have a cloud. Start your own cloud. Because the truth is hearing from God through people requires humility. It means admitting that I don't always see clearly. I don't always choose wisely. I don't always know what is best for me. But God in his grace surrounds us with people who can help us here. Well, we might miss on our own. So don't tune them out. Don't wait till the damage is done. Open your heart. Invite wise voices in and ask God to give you the humility to listen. Because sometimes the voice you've been ignoring may be the very voice that God is using to guide you. One week from today, we will gather for baptism weekend. I'm just wondering, are any of you hearing from God on that? If you've been putting it off, waiting for the perfect moment or wondering if you're ready, maybe this is the voice of God inviting you to take the next step. Don't overcomplicate obedience. If you've said yes to Jesus, let next weekend be the weekend that you go public with your faith. I'll be there to meet with you right after this service. Because I know, I know that many of you know this is your next step. I was talking to a guy after the 830 service and he came by and he goes, "I'm really too busy next weekend. But I'll do the baptism thing soon." And I said, "Yeah, that's what everybody says." And he's like, "What?" And I'm like, "Yeah." I said, "If you're ready, if you said yes to Jesus, it's the most important thing you can do in your life." So whatever you got planned next weekend, whatever it is, cancel it.

And he did. So he signed up. Can I pray over you? Let's pray. Father, thank you for loving us enough to speak. Thank you for speaking through your word and through your spirit and through the wise Godly people you place in our lives. Give us humility to listen when counsel is hard to hear. Give us discernment to recognize voices that are pointing us toward you. And give us the courage to tune out the voices that only tell us what our itching ears want to hear. And Lord, for anyone facing a decision, caring, regret, or feeling alone would you surround them with people who love Jesus and love them. Help us to build the kind of community where truth is spoken with grace, where burdens are carried together, and none of us, and I mean none of us, have to run the race alone. And Lord, if you're calling someone to take a next step, whether that's baptism or joining a group, confessing sin, inviting wise counsel into their life, give us the courage to respond today because we want to hear from you, God. So open our hearts and quiet our pride and teach us to listen to the voice that matters the most, you. And I pray all this in Jesus' name. Amen. Hey, I love you guys. Thanks. (audience clapping)