Learning to Listen to that Still Small Voice

by Jed Genson

We often pray for the Holy Spirit, but have we tried listening for His still small voice?

When I was a Bible worker, I daily committed my way unto the Lord like David admonished in Psalm 37:5, “Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring [it] to pass.”

One day, when I didn’t have any appointments, I prayed, “Lord, who do you want me to visit today?” A still small voice said, “Go see Saul.” Saul was a gentleman I had visited a few months earlier, but who hadn’t seemed very interested in studying the Bible. I dismissed the thought, but it kept coming back. “Go see Saul.” “Go see Saul!” Finally, I gave in. “Ok! I will!”

As I knocked on the door and introduced myself, he rather abruptly said, “Do you have any Ellen White books?” I was shocked! “Which ones?” I asked. He handed me a crumpled up El Gran Conflicto (The Great Controversy). “This one,” he said. In God’s providence I had just received seven cases of Spanish Great Controversies from a man who had ordered them for giveaways at a fair and still had extras.

“So, how many do you need?” I queried. He replied that he needed 10 for his family members. I was happy to inform him that I had plenty for his family. Saul and I had many conversations after that. I learned that every time I listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit, things happen.

One day my wife and I went into town to do a Bible study and eat lunch. We were on our way to an Italian restaurant, when I stopped at a red light. I was impressed to go to the Mexican restaurant across the street instead. As I turned into the parking lot, my wife questioned, “What are you doing? We are going to the Italian place!” “I just had a thought to come in here,” I said.

We went in and were shown to a table. As we sat down, my wife said, “Honey! It looks like that man over there is choking!” I jumped up and quickly performed the Heimlich maneuver, dislodging the piece of steak he was choking on.

Sobbing, he thanked me again and again. “You saved my life!” he cried. I shared that God had a plan for his life. We gave him some Bible study materials and prayed with him and his wife before we left that afternoon.

I had committed my life to God that morning and He kept His promise—He brought it [my way] to pass. I encourage you to try it. Earnestly submit your plans and your will to God and listen to the thoughts He gives you. Your life will never be the same.

Jed Genson pastors a three-church district in the US state of Michigan. He and his wife, Jodi, were serving as Bible workers in Washington state when this story took place.

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World Church Prayer Requests

November 11 - 18, 2018

• PRAYER REQUEST: Please pray for all those who have lost loved ones and homes in the recent tragic fires of Paradise, California. Many of our Adventist brothers and sisters have experienced great loss.

• PRAYER REQUEST: Continue to pray for the upcoming 10 Days of Prayer held in churches worldwide January 9-19, 2019. Pray that churches and church members will participate and that this year’s 10 Days of Prayer will be Holy Spirit led as never before. (Visit tendaysofprayer.org to learn more!)

• PRAYER REQUEST: Pray for the Life Hope Center, an urban Center of Influence, in Seville, Spain. Pray for the ministry of New Life Mures, which include a restaurant, a health-food store, a dental practice, a catering business, and classes.

• PRAYER REQUEST: Pray for MyGen Seventh-day Adventist Church, the Greater New York Conference’s first “café church” focused on engaging young adults in mission work in the New York City area.

• PRAYER REQUEST: Please pray for two Life Hope Centers in Bensheim/Bremen, Germany, that provide language classes for refugees, health courses, cooking workshops, cultural exchange and more.

• PRAYER REQUEST: Pray that God will show us how to create “Life Hope Centers” or “Centers of Influence” in our home churches and communities. Pray that as we do this, the world will see John 13:35 fulfilled in our lives as Seventh-day Adventist Christians: ‘By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”