Why Is God Talking To Me? | Pastor Mike Frisch

Devotional

Day 1: When the Shepherd Says "Stop"

The disciples froze as Jesus rebuked Peter’s sword-strike in Gethsemane. “Put your sword away,” He commanded—not to restrict, but to redirect violence into surrender. Like Paul halting persecution to become Christ’s messenger, God’s stops protect our purpose. His “no” to harmful habits or selfish patterns isn’t rejection, but rescue. [47:05]

Jesus stops Saul mid-stride not to punish, but to pivot him toward healing nations. Our Shepherd knows when our actions—even well-intentioned ones—harm ourselves or others. His commands guard our influence.

What noise drowns out His “stop” in your life? Social media scrolling? Critical words? A secret indulgence? Write it plainly. Then ask: Which relationship suffers most when I ignore His pause?

“I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. Not everything is constructive. No one should seek their own good, but the good of others.
(1 Corinthians 10:23-24, NIV)

Prayer: Confess one thing God’s asked you to stop. Thank Him for protecting others through your obedience.

Challenge: Write “STOP:” followed by one specific action on your phone’s lock screen. Read it aloud three times today.

Day 2: Fish and Follow

Peter stood knee-deep in Galilee’s waves, empty nets mocking his efforts. “Put out into deep water,” Jesus instructed. The fisherman balked—night was for fishing, day for repairs. Yet his “Master, we’ve worked hard” shifted to “because You say so.” The net nearly sank two boats. [59:11]

Jesus’ starts often defy logic. The rich young ruler needed to begin generosity; Zacchaeus spontaneously repaid fraud victims. God’s starts push us beyond self-sufficiency into His sufficiency.

Where is He nudging you to launch despite doubt? A strained relationship needing your first step? A buried talent requiring courage? What practical act of love have you rationalized away?

Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor… Then come, follow me.”
(Mark 10:21, NIV)

Prayer: Ask for courage to start one thing that scares you but honors others.

Challenge: Give $20 (or groceries) to someone in need today—no strings attached.

Day 3: Remain in the Vine

The disciples huddled in an upper room for ten agonizing days. Jesus had said “Wait”—so they waited. When Pentecost’s fire fell, their obedience fueled a harvest: 3,000 saved. Staying positions us for God’s “proper time.” [01:04:29]

Farmers don’t yank up crops to check roots. Paul urged the Galatians: “Don’t grow weary.” Your faithful parenting, daily integrity, or unseen prayers matter. What feels stagnant may be deep growth.

Where have you begged God for new orders while neglecting current ones? What holy habit have you abandoned because results lagged?

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
(Galatians 6:9, NIV)

Prayer: Thank God for three ways He’s working during your “stay.”

Challenge: Text encouragement to someone persevering in a long obedience.

Day 4: Unmuffled Hearts

Nathan confronted David’s adultery. The king didn’t deflect—he wept, “I’ve sinned.” Confession freed David from denial’s prison. James 5:16 links honesty with healing: buried sin isolates; shared sin liberates. [57:40]

We confess not to grovel, but to grab grace. Like the prodigal rehearsing his apology mid-pigpen, our admissions route us home.

What secret have you bottled that saps joy? What habit persists because you’ve only whispered it to God? Who needs to hear your “I was wrong” this week?

Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.
(James 5:16, NIV)

Prayer: Name one struggle aloud to God. Then ask Him for a trusted confidant.

Challenge: Call a mature believer today. Say, “I need your prayer about something.”

Day 5: Tattoos and Obedience

A nameless boy offered five loaves. Disciples saw insufficiency; Jesus saw ignition. The miracle required neither eloquence nor excess—just handed-over obedience. Small steps birth big wonders. [01:10:15]

Pat’s tattooed verse outshone seminary degrees because he lived it. God honors applied truth over accumulated knowledge. Your next step—not your whole journey—matters most.

What simple command have you overcomplicated? Which “ordinary” act of kindness have you dismissed as insignificant?

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know you are my disciples.”
(John 13:34-35, NIV)

Prayer: Ask Jesus to highlight one verse to embody this week.

Challenge: Memorize John 13:35. Demonstrate it through one deliberate act today.

Sermon Summary

We gather to listen for the voice of God because God speaks to guide our lives. We believe that Jesus shows why God speaks: to help us follow him. We practice hearing by tuning our hearts through scripture, prayer, community, and attention to circumstances. We recognize three clear directions when God speaks. Sometimes God tells us to stop, to refrain from actions that harm us or others so that we become people who serve the common good. Sometimes God tells us to start, to take concrete steps that require God’s help and move our hearts from possession to participation. Sometimes God tells us to stay, to remain faithful in a season so that endurance produces a harvest in God’s timing. We confess and name what needs to end because confession opens the door to forgiveness and healing and keeps our freedom from becoming selfishness. We choose specific practices that protect relationships and witness, for example avoiding public passive aggression and refusing habits that invite loss of self-control. We take steps of generosity, service, and community because following Jesus reorients life from inward gain to outward care. We do not wait for miraculous leaps. We accept small steps of obedience that build spiritual maturity. We measure maturity not by theological knowledge alone but by whether life changes toward love for others. We resist the temptation to chase endless new words and instead steward the last clear word God has given. We write down three prompts: stop, start, stay. We ask God to name one thing under each prompt and to grant clarity and courage to act. We remain confident that God speaks in ways that are simple, accessible, and geared to help us follow the good shepherd who calls his sheep to hear and to follow.

Key Takeaways

1. God speaks to guide our steps God speaks so that we can follow, not to mystify us. Hearing God gives specific direction that leads toward participation in God’s kingdom and toward loving others. We trust God’s voice because it seeks our flourishing and points to Jesus as the pattern for action. [41:27]
2. Stop to protect others and self Stopping often serves the common good and reveals the influence we carry. Refraining from certain freedoms prevents harm and creates space for healing, accountability, and renewed witness. Confession unites forgiveness with communal restoration and shifts focus from self to neighbor. [48:37]
3. Start where your heart lacks Beginning steps call for dependence on God and expose misplaced trust in possessions or performance. Starting may mean generosity, service, or joining community so that belief becomes embodied in love. Real encounter with God often follows a step that we cannot accomplish on our own. [59:11]
4. Stay faithful to the given call Remaining in a season cultivates endurance that yields a timely harvest when God acts. Faithfulness resists endless novelty and honors the last clear word by living it out consistently. Patience with obedience often reveals God’s perfect timing and deepens spiritual maturity. [64:02]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[33:24] - Honoring Mothers
[34:39] - Prayer for Mothers
[35:54] - Illustration of Distraction
[37:09] - Missing the Voice
[38:42] - Series Overview: Noise
[41:27] - Purpose of God Speaking
[44:21] - Three Directions Introduced
[45:12] - Stop: Examples from Scripture
[48:16] - Freedom and the Good of Others
[58:25] - Start: Rich Young Ruler
[64:02] - Stay: Faithful Endurance
[70:39] - Invitation: Stop Start Stay and Prayer

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading
John 10:27 (ESV)
My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.

Observation Questions

What does Jesus mean when he says his sheep "hear [his] voice" and "follow [him]" in John 10:27? How does this connect to the idea that God speaks to guide our steps?
In the story of the rich young ruler (Mark 10:17-22), what specific action did Jesus ask him to start doing, and why did the man struggle to obey? [59:11]
According to 1 Corinthians 10:23-24, why is it important to consider whether our actions are "beneficial" or "constructive" for others, not just ourselves? [48:37]
What example did the sermon give about refraining from behaviors that harm relationships or witness? [53:40]

Interpretation Questions

Why might God’s command to "stop" certain behaviors (like Jonah’s disobedience or Saul’s persecution) ultimately serve the good of others, not just ourselves? [46:08]
How does the call to "start" something new (e.g., generosity, service) reveal our dependence on God, as seen in the rich young ruler’s story? [58:25]
Galatians 6:9 encourages believers not to "grow weary" in doing good. What makes staying faithful in a difficult season so challenging, and how does patience deepen spiritual maturity? [01:04:29]
How does prioritizing "the good of others" (1 Corinthians 10:24) shift our focus from self-centeredness to Christlike love? [50:28]

Application Questions

What is one habit or behavior you sense God might be asking you to stop because it harms your relationships, witness, or spiritual growth? How can confession and accountability help you take this step? [57:40]
Where do you feel your heart "lacks" trust in God? What practical step (e.g., generosity, serving, joining community) could you start this week to depend on Him more? [58:25]
Is there an area of your life (e.g., a relationship, a calling, a discipline) where God is asking you to stay faithful even though results aren’t immediate? How can you cultivate endurance? [01:04:02]
The sermon warned against using social media for passive aggression. How can refraining from certain online behaviors protect your witness and relationships? [53:40]
What "small step of obedience" (like tithing or serving) could you take this month to move from inward focus to outward care? [01:02:30]
How might writing down "stop, start, stay" prompts help you discern and act on God’s voice more clearly? [01:10:39]
Are you chasing "new words" from God while neglecting a previous direction He gave? How can you recommit to stewarding His last clear instruction? [01:06:07]

Sermon Clips

What do you need to start? Especially if God is asking you to stop something. Because God will say don't and then do. What do you need to start? For some of you, maybe it is being generous. Maybe you need to start tithing. See some of us we tip. That was a really good message or a really good song, so I'll throw a couple bucks or I'll send a couple bucks to the church account because it was a really good message or a really good thought or a really good word. That's tipping and that isn't tithing. Tithing is my heart belongs to God and I wanna build this thing with the people of God so that more people can meet Jesus and learn to follow Jesus. [01:02:21] (35 seconds) #StartTithing

And so sometimes when God is asking you to start, stop, and stay, he's not asking you for leaps. He's asking you for steps. And friends, when you say yes and choose obedience, that's spiritual maturity. Spiritual maturity is you doing what God has commanded that you do. Spiritual maturity, really the goal of hearing God and hearing his voice is to follow God's direction. Some of you, you know the scriptures. Some of you, you could quote all of the verses today. [01:08:29] (40 seconds) #SpiritualSteps

Great message, by the way. Last four weeks, same thing. Great message. We get it. We we get that we are to do what love requires. Next week, perhaps maybe we could turn the page. And the pastor said, when we start doing what love requires, then I'll turn the page. Maybe for a lot of us, we don't need a new word from God. We just need to be faithful and obedient to the word that he's already given us. [01:06:25] (27 seconds) #DoWhatLoveRequires

You know all of the bible. Doctrine. You know all of the theology, and yet you have no one to talk to about it. You have no one in relationship to practice it. You have no one. Following Jesus requires other people. And often we live in isolation. We're afraid maybe because we've been hurt, and I get that. But that doesn't excuse the command of being in relationship with one another. What do you need to start? [01:03:11] (27 seconds) #FaithInCommunity

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Why Is God Talking To Me? | Pastor Mike Frisch | Active Church Yucaipa