Pay Attention

1. Pay Attention To His Voice 1 Kings 19: ¹¹ Then He said, “Go out, and stand on the mountain before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces before the Lord, but 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 ^[e]a still small voice.
   ¹³ So it was, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. Suddenly a voice came to him, and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”This conversation between God and Elijah came on the backdrop of a battle with the prophets of Baal. At the end of this encounter, Elijah killed the prophets of Baal. Jezebel’s response was to threaten Elijah’s life, so he fled to Beersheba.Elijah wished death on himself. He asked the Lord to take his life. 1 King 19:4. A person may face situations such that exiting this earth seems like the only way out. Indeed daily, we see many people choose this option and, in extreme cases, take their spouses and children along.
   Elijah was suicidal. This same person had boldly called on God on mount Carmel. This same Elijah who said there should be no rain except at his word 1 Kings 17:1.
   Every human being has a moment of lowness, and at that point, the question is, what would you do? God sent an angel to Elijah to minister to him, and for the next forty days and nights, Elijah did not eat but continued on a journey to Horeb, the mountain of God.
   In the season of confusion, when all hell has let loose, take some time off fast and pray, then be attentive.

   1 Kings 19: ¹¹ Then He said, “Go out, and stand on the mountain before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces before the Lord, but 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.
   ¹³ So it was, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. Suddenly a voice came to him, and said, “What are you doing here, Elija
   The manifestations of a great strong wind, an earthquake and fire were not a guarantee that God was present. You need to pay attention during your season of confusion. You need to be calm to discern correctly when God is giving instructions.

   At last, in 1 Kings 19:12, a ‘still small voice’ came after the fire. Elijah recognized that this was the voice of God, and indeed God spoke.

   Prayer
   Spend about 10 minutes praying, and when you are done, be quiet and allow the Holy Spirit to minister back to you. 

   Lord, make me calm.
   I let go of every anxious thought.
   I am setting my mind on Christ, who is above the chaos, confusion, doubt, and any unwarranted situation.
   I listen for Your voice Lord. I am attentive
   I am calm,

   Proverbs 8: ³⁴ Blessed is the man who listens to me,
   Watching daily at my gates,
   Waiting at the posts of my doors’

   Isaiah 32: ³ The eyes of those who see will not be dim,
   And the ears of those who hear will listen.

   Pray
   Lord, I am listening and watching at Your gates
   I am waiting to see what You will say
   My eyes will not be dim because I will see
   My ears hear, and I listen for Your voice.
   I have hearing ears and seeing eyes.
   I am attentive, Lord.
   I know You have an answer for me. I am attentive.

   (listen intermittently as you pray and expect to hear something, expect some insight or revelation, God wants to speak to you)

   2. Undivided Attention 
   1 Corinthians 7: ³⁵ I am telling you this for your own benefit, not to put restrictions on you — I am simply concerned that you live in a proper manner and serve the Lord with undivided devotion.

   To identify His voice, we must lean toward Him with undivided attention.

   This is what Mary did in Luke 10:39 – she sat and heard what Jesus was saying., She was paying attention to His voice.
   When you go to church, or you are listening to a message online, have a posture like Mary. Tell yourself God is speaking to me. Give your undivided attention because God has something to tell you. Mary was paying attention.

   Luke 10: ³⁸ As Jesus and the disciples continued on their way to Jerusalem, they came to a certain village where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. ³⁹ Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to what he taught. ⁴⁰ But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, “Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.”
   ⁴¹ But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! ⁴² There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.” NLT

   Pray
   Bind the spirit of distraction.
   Acts 13:⁸ But Elymas, the sorcerer (as his name means in Greek), interfered and urged the governor to pay no attention to what Barnabas and Saul said. He was trying to keep the governor from believing.

   Reject anything that will keep you busy, but there is no productivity.
   Address the things that keep you busy, but you cannot account for your time.
   Address patterns and cycles in your life: your life, your family, spouse, children, career business. – those things that bring you back to square 1.
   Command everything that is a distraction in your life to move.
   Lord, show me where I am distracted and losing focus.

   Jesus told Martha that she was worried and upset over details.
   What are the things I am worried about? Lord, what am I wasting time on? What do I need to let go of?
   Open my eyes, Lord, to see I pray in Jesus’ name.
   Pay attention to the voice of the Holy Spirit, your inner witness.
   Pay attention to your body speaking to you. Did you know that your body has a voice?
   Pay attention to patterns and cycles in your life: your life, your family, spouse, children, career business.

   3. Watchman, Be Aware and Be Alert
   The last week of January, we had a snowstorm. From the time it was announced up until the day, people kept saying how bad the day would be, how there would be accidents on the road, etc. When colleagues at work would tell me that it would be brutal, I would immediately say, nope, not for me.
   When I made an error on a document or I missed seeing something, a co-worker would often jokingly say, “the cataract is getting worse,” and everyone had a good laugh until I recognized that it was not something to agree with. I started rejecting it every time she said it. “God forbid!

   Be aware of the devil’s tactics, and do not permit him access. GENESIS 3:1. He was crafty, so Adam did not recognize satan had an ulterior motive.
   Just as the devil came after the earth, he is after anything good. He is after our marriages, children, family stability, children’s future, and your means of livelihood.

   Our responsibility is to keep the devil out – tend your garden and keep/protect it.
   Another example of the enemy coming in craftily is the story of the Gibeonites.

   Joshua 9: ⁴ they worked craftily, and went and ^[a]pretended to be ambassadors. And they took old sacks on their donkeys, old wineskins torn and ^[b]mended, NKJV

   Joshua 9: ⁴ They did work wilily, and went and made as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks upon their asses, and wine bottles, old, and rent, and bound up;

   Ephesians 6: ¹¹ Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

   The devil is constantly looking for ways to penetrate our space, and we must disallow it. He is tricky and pretends.
   The story of Adam and Eve exemplifies that they were oblivious to the MOTIVE OF THE ENEMY.
   The story of the Gibeonites is similar. The people failed to discern that the Gibeonites had an ulterior motive.
   The Gibeonites worked craftily, cunningly, wilily – words meaning pretty much the same thing – they were deceptive.
   Our response to the wiles of the devil are

2. We must not be ignorant of his wiles 2 Corinthians 2:11
3. We put on the whole amour so that we can stand against the wiles of the devil. Ephesians 6:10-12

Also, know that God will turn it around for your victory. God will reverse what the enemy intended and turn it around for your good and mine. Joshua 9:27

Pray
Pray Ephesians 6:10-12 –
¹⁰ A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. ¹¹ Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. ¹² For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.

It is the armour of God that will help us stand against the wiles and tricks of the devil.
Begin to clothe yourself with the amour.

Now, pray that just as God did in Joshua 9:27, He would turn every thing around to favour your righteous cause. Where the enemy thought he had gained over you, God will turn it around to favour you.

Amen