AdventureTruth:He is always

_______ to mespeaking

Then came the Feast of Dedicationat Jerusalem. It was winter, andJesus was in the temple areawalking in Solomon’s Colonnade.The Jews gathered around him,saying, “How long will you keep usin suspense? If you are the Christ,tell us plainly.”

Jesus answered, “I did tell you, butyou do not believe. The miracles Ido in my Father’s name speak forme, but you do not believe becauseyou are not my sheep. My sheeplisten to my voice; I know them, andthey follow me.” John 10:22-27

“I give them eternal life, and theyshall never perish; no one cansnatch them out of my hand. MyFather, who has given them to me,is greater than all; no one cansnatch them out of my Father’shand. I and the Father are one.” John 10:28-30

AdventureTruth:He is always

speaking to me

“My sheep hear my voice…”

We need to ______listen

“Here I am! I stand at the door andknock. If anyone hears my voice andopens the door, I will come in andeat with him, and he with me.” Jesus in Revelation 3:20

AdventureTruth:He is always

speaking to me

“I know them…”

He has a _____ for ___

heartme

“…And surely I am with you always,to the very end of the age.”

Jesus in Matthew 28:20

“Woe to the shepherds of Israel whoonly take care of themselves!”

Ezekiel 34:2

For this is what the Sovereign Lordsays: “I myself will search for mysheep and look after them.”

Ezekiel 34:11

“…they will lie down in good grazingland, and there they will feed in arich pasture on the mountains ofIsrael.” Ezekiel

34:14

“You my sheep, the sheep of mypasture, are people, and I am yourGod,” declares the Sovereign Lord. Ezekiel 34:31

He tends his flock like a shepherd;He gathers the lambs in his armsand carries them close to hisheart… Isaiah 40:11

“I am the good shepherd; I know mysheep and my sheep know me…” Jesus in John 10:14

AdventureTruth:He is always

speaking to me

“And they follow me…”

We need to _______ to what we _____

respondhear

“When he has brought out all hisown, he goes on ahead of them, andhis sheep follow him because theyknow his voice.” Jesus in John

10:4

Then he said: “The God of our fathershas chosen you to know his will andto see the Righteous One and to hearwords from his mouth. You will be hiswitness to all men of what you haveseen and heard.”

Acts 22:14

How then do we normally hear Him speaking to us?

We hear Him speaking to our hearts.

AdventureTruth:He is always

speaking to me

Wow!!! It's been a long time since we've talked!! I'm glad we've able to reconnect on Facebook!

Thanks for your message, and yes, I do have some very strong beliefs, and I'm more than happy to

share my thoughts with you. 

I see you're working in the medical profession, training or "caring for" those who "care" for others.

That's a perfect match to your personality. The thoughtful, sensitive, compassionate qualities I

remember of you from our school days certainly fit your job description! It's awesome that you're in a

position to positively impact so many lives.

And, I'm thrilled that you're exploring your faith and God's plan for your life ... the very fact that you're

thinking about it, is proof that God is actively seeking your attention! Don't be discouraged that

you haven't found any discernable answers .... yet.  

Our God is constantly in pursuit of us, and He passionately wants us to get to know Him better and better everyday. "Organized Religion" is the last thing God wants for your life ... in fact during Jesus time on earth, He consistently spoke out

against religious zealots and their failed attempts to "practice religion". He hates that and that's not

want He wants from us.

God's desire is for you to pursue a personal relationship with Him. To let Him be your guide,

your conscience, your mentor, your passion, your hope, your confidence, your peace ... your

savior. These things are all achieved through personal prayer and meditation with Him, the

reading of His Word (the Bible) and the discerning of His voice in the middle of the "noise of life". There certainly is a need to

connect with like-minded people in a church setting for Christian fellowship and

encouragement, but your primary focus will always be your one-on-one relationship with

God.

God's love is unconditional ... we could never do enough "good things" to earn it, and there's nothing we could ever do to lose it. He doesn't

focus on our failures and sins, in fact He forgets about them at the very moment we ask His forgiveness. To top it all off, He's already

paid the debt for our sins through His Son's death on the cross. The bottom line is that it's not about us, it's all about Him and His love for

us!

He wants you to "cast your cares" on Him, because He truly cares for you. He really IS the best friend you'll ever have! He desires to carry

your burdens and your grief and your failures and your mistakes because He knows they're too

heavy for you. But, He's a perfect gentleman, He won't get involved in your life without your

permission, so He's simply waiting for your invitation.

 Do I think God is guiding you back to the faith of

your childhood? Absolutely! But more importantly, I'm CONVINCED that He's calling you to experience a new and personal relationship with Himself, one

that will reveal TRUE peace for you!

I hope this is helpful for you. It's intended to be simple and clear and easy to understand. I want

you to let me know your thoughts and I'd be happy to answer any other questions that

this has stirred-up for you. 

It's been great talking with you again and I look forward to hearing from you very soon! 

 Take care,

 Joel 

“My sheep hear my voice; I know them,

and they follow me.” Jesus