Faith on the Go: Ep 10: choes of Faith: Restoring the Lost Voice of God"

0:00 Hello, and welcome back to Diary of a Black Woman Podcast. I'm your host Connie Morris, and we are still continuing our Faith on the Go series of The Curse of Familiarity. And today's episode is titled, The Danger of Ignoring Conviction Until Heaven Goes Silent. I'm your host Connie Morris, and where we keep it real, raw, and rooted in the Word, This is going to be a little deep, so buckle up and let's get going here. Have you ever gone through a dry season and wondered, where is God?

0:42 If your prayers felt like they're just hitting the ceiling and just falling back on you, or if you ever stopped hearing His voice, the voice of the Holy Spirit. But never stopped going through the motion. This episode is for you. Today's message is called Familiar But Forgotten. We're looking at what happens when we ignore conviction for so long that heaven goes quiet. Because here's the truth. The scariest judgment is not a storm. It's silence. And sometimes silence is God's response to a heart that's grown numb.

1:32 Let's talk about it. This is Faith on the Go, Real Talk, Real Growth, wherever you are. Let's go to 1 Samuel 3, verse 1. In those days, the word of the Lord was rare. There were not many visions. Let's talk about that. God has stopped speaking to Israel. Why? Because his people, including the priests, had grown too familiar with his presence, but carelessness with his instruction. They had grown too familiar with his presence, but careless with his instruction.

2:15 So they were totally disrespecting God. And God says, if you're not going to follow my instructions, I'm just not going to talk. Eli was in the temple and the ark of God was present. The rituals still happened, but the voice of God had gone silent. And that's what happens when we keep showing up in sacred places but stop showing honor. What that reminds me of is maybe a dry church. If you're in a church where you're still coming in, you're worshiping, you're praying, but there hasn't been a move of God in a while.

2:59 Something is going on that God is trying to get your attention. He's just not called. The way he's getting your attention, he's not talking. He's not showing no signs or wonders. No miracles are happening in the church. He's just silent. But yet, we see here that the rituals will still happen. They were still doing the offering. Here, they were still burning a sacrifice. But God has not spoken. You know, I was thinking about this before I started this podcast. And you know when you're a new christian and you know sometimes you don't recognize when god because you're not used to god talking to you know he he got you saved because you you felt the unction to go to church and to go to the altar and you and you feel that presence that pressure not even a pressure that that pull it's like a magnetic magnetic pull to get you saved, And then somehow, like we talked, I think the last episode, that we look back, we go back to what was familiar because we don't know this Jesus.

4:10 You know, this Jesus that the pastor's preaching. You know, we're the rich young ruler talking about tithes and offerings. We barely got money to pay our rent. So we're like the rich young ruler. We're not ready to give it all up yet. And so we go back to comfortableness. right? And so we started out hearing God's voice really, really strong, but yet the voice of God has grown silent. So what do we do? What do we do with that? What do we do? Here we see Eli is at the temple. The ark of God was there. I mean, God's presence was there. So whenever there's God's presence, God likes to talk as we know.

4:55 But the ritual will still happen. Things are still happen at the church. Church is open on time. Things are still moving. The choir is still going. The pastor is still preaching, but there is no move of God. And so this is what happens when we show up in a sacred place, but stop showing honor. Is that happening in your church, in your life, that you no longer hear the voice of God, that God has grown silent in your life? You carry a Bible, but ignore what it says. You can go to church, but never go deeper. Just kind of walk in the building. Kind of go through the ritual of it. I went to church on Sunday.

5:37 You can be proud of that, but that's all you did. Went to church. God didn't touch you. Nobody touched you. No laying on the hands would happen. Everybody was just kind of doing their routine. You can still hear sermons, but never feel conviction. because you hear the sermon, it's really for you, but you're thinking like, who else is for? Because it's not for me. I'm going to tell my friends this was a good sermon. They should have heard this sermon, and God's really talking to you. And slowly the fire dies. The word grows rare, and you wake up in silence, wondering why you don't hear him anymore.

6:18 That's a scary place to be. God is a God that likes to talk and if you honor him I think in my earlier episodes I talk about if you have a dream write it down if he speaks to you write it down if you honor what he has for you he will continue to speak to you when you dishonor him he will go silent why would he continue to talk to someone who's ignoring him would you in a natural you're talking And, you know, sometimes we talk to our kids, they act like they can't hear us. Come on now. You know, I'm not married, but when I was, our husband, like they can't hear you.

6:59 You know, if you're not going to do it, I say, why should I talk? So what does that look like today? You stop repenting because you stop feeling conviction. You know, you went back. You did a lots wife move. You look back, but not only did you look back, you stayed back. And so you're no longer following Jesus. You're following your past. You had an awesome conversion experience where you gave your life to Jesus You ran up to the altar. You knew he called you. You laid on the floor. You cried, and you had a wonderful experience, but that's it. That's it. You heard his voice to get saved, but you didn't keep hearing his voice to stay saved.

7:45 You still serve, but your spirit feels disconnected. Sometimes we can serve in the church, but we're really not connected. We're doing it out of duty, not out of honor and respect for Him. So we're serving in the church, and yet we're just, you know, we know those people. They come to church, they're serving, but yet they always got something to say, their idea of how things should be ran. If they needed your idea, they would have asked you. And, you know, I know I'm convicted because I was always, and then I learned, like, they wanted my opinion.

8:26 They would have asked me. They would have called me at home and said, Connie, will you think about this? But they didn't. So I learned when God told me to just be quiet, just do what you're supposed to do. Whether it doesn't look like it works, if somebody thought it might be a good idea, just do it. You know, so number one, you serve and your spirit doesn't feel connected. You're just showing up. You got the blazer on, whatever your attire is for usher, greeter, hospitality, whatever. You just show up. And you are not connected to anything. You're just doing your ritual.

9:07 You haven't heard the voice of the Lord in a long time because you've already checked you on some things and you haven't even changed that. This is not going to be a negative podcast. This is going to be kind of just a checklist. We always enter on a positive note with prayer and allow people to get their stuff together. You get busy doing ministry, but you lose intimacy. It's so easy to get busy doing ministry. When I was on the ministerial staff, it's a lot of ministerial stuff to do before church, after church, during the week. I mean, you know, when you have a small staff and you have a large congregation, it's always something to do.

9:47 And so if you don't put your prayer first and then last when there's no one around, like first and then last, you can get lost in the busyness of church. You think you're doing right, but you haven't heard God's voice. It ain't fresh. I've been there. You pretty much burn out. You wish that everybody would go home. You're like, get home, go home. Because you're at church from about 6 in the morning to like 4 because of the altar line. People want to talk to the pastor, and the pastors would talk all day to them. That's like a mini counseling session for some. You know, I'm just saying it's just the truth, right?

10:30 They don't come to prayer, but they will stay after service and talk about their problems. But that's what sheep, the sheep will do. And the pastor is a shepherd and he will take care of his sheep no matter when they're in need. You say, God knows my heart. He never, but nevertheless, I'm examining it. These are some things that are so serious. So let's keep it plain. In 2025, you stop repenting because you stop feeling convicted. You still serve, but your spirit feels disconnected. You get busy doing ministry, but lose intimacy. You say, God knows my heart, but you never let him examine it. Silence doesn't always mean God is gone.

11:13 Sometimes he means he's waiting for you to want him back. How powerful is that, that God is still in the room. He's just not talking. He's watching you, seeing when you're going to pay attention to him. You ever do that with your kids? You know, you're hiding in plain sight and they're looking for you and then they go, mom, you know, that's what God does. God said, do you want me for real? I'm just going to sit here and watch you. Are you doing this for me or are you doing it for show? So how can we reignite this familiarity?

11:56 How can we reignite what familiarity killed? How can we really get our hearts straight, get our hearts right? Number one, you want to return to reverence. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, Proverbs 9.10. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Ask God to restore holy fear, not fear of punishment, but awe of his presence. So ask him to return that awe back to that, like that awe back, like the first love, you know, back into that relationship.

12:37 And he will, just a request. Remember, he's in the room. He's waiting for you to respond. He's watching you. Say, Lord, I want that awe back. I'll let it go cold. I remember I had that conversation with God once, and I lay in the bed where I stand up in prayer. I said, Lord, I haven't heard from you in a while. You know, I know you're here. And then he starts talking because he wants to know, do you want him? Because he can just start talking and you start listening. I want to know if you're here. I know you're here. Number two, respond quickly to conviction. Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts. Hebrews 3.15, delayed obedience, deaden your sensitivity.

13:23 And sometimes, not sometimes, all the times, when you're praying with God in his holy presence, in his reverence all, Remember, he knows your heart. And I was having just some mediocre challenges with this lady at church. We serve on the same team, and we're just bumping heads, right? You know, we're both strong-willed women, but we're bumping heads, and sometimes a little too much. And so the Lord just poked my heart. He says, kind of want you to, first of all, stop bumping heads. And kind of repent and ask for forgiveness and send her a text and get this thing straight because this has gone on long enough.

14:11 And it's in the middle of prayer. Before we can get a hello, hallelujah to Jesus, he's checking me about this. You know, you wake up, you're ready to pray, and he's talking to you about some stuff that's interfering with this relationship. And I did it. I sent a text. I said, I don't remember what I said. And I waited for a response. The lady didn't respond, but I did my part because the Bible says, be at peace with everyone if it's up to you. So if it was up to me, I got that off my chest. Remember, sometimes you gotta be obedient. So I didn't do a delayed obedience. I wait till I get out of prayer. No, I do it right away because the conviction was hard and strong and I needed to do that because it was interfering with my relationship with God.

14:58 You know, so sometimes we think we're doing the right thing. And God's like, no. Like, who gives me the right to be the supervisor over someone? I don't get to do that. I don't get to do that. You know, have, no, I don't get to do that. He says, clear it up, clear it up. Whether you were right or whether they were the wrong one, it wasn't always me. Sometimes it was her. But at the end of the day, if God says you get it right, then you get it right. Don't be bitchy-washy with that. So you want to respond quickly with conviction. Remember, you want to always hear the voice of the Lord.

15:40 Why is that important in these dangerous times? He's the one that keeps us safe, right? He's the one that's, remember, he's in the room. You don't want him not to let you crash and burn while he's in the room. Am I right? Remove the routine from your worship. Hello, stop treating devotion like a checklist. You know, these people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. So if you're finding that your prayer is a routine, sometimes it is a routine because you get it at the same time. But if you're doing the same one, two, three things and not allowing the Holy Ghost to direct this relationship, remember, sometimes he's going to talk first.

16:23 Sometimes you're going to talk first. Sometimes you're just sitting there quiet listening. But if you have a routine that you need to keep because it's your routine. Then God's going to sit there and just listen and let you do your show. Remember, he's in the room, and he's going to let you do your show, and you're going to go off, and you haven't heard a word from the Lord. And you might need a word from the Lord for that particular day. Am I right in the last one? Ask for the fire again. Will you revive us again that your people may rejoice in you? Psalms 85, 6. He's still speaking. He just needs ears to hear.

17:07 Is that something he needs you to pay attention? He needs you to hear him when he speaks. Isn't that just like he's a father? That he needs you to listen. He don't need you to just, uh-huh, got it. Don't you hate when someone do that? What did I say? I'm just trying to get you finished so I can get on with my business. So what are the four ways to reignite what familiarity kills? Number one, return to reverence. Proverbs 9, 10, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Respond quickly to conviction. Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts. Hebrews 3, 15.

17:47 Delayed obedience, dead, and just sensitivity. And then, number three, remove the routine from your worship. Stop treating devotion like a checklist. These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me, Matthew 15a. The scripture starts out like these people, like God knows each of us by name. I mean, he knows the hairs on our head. But when he says these people, he's kind of dissing you. He said, these people don't know me. They're not with me. I'm in the room. They're ignoring me, right? I'm in the room. And then fire. Ask God for the fire again.

18:30 Will you not revive us again that your people may rejoice in you? Psalms 85.6. He's still speaking. He just needs your ears. To hear. He needs your attention. Eli was in the temple, but he couldn't hear God anymore because he got too comfortable around what used to move him. Ooh, that just touched my heart. He got too comfortable with what used to move him. Don't let that be you. Don't let routine rob you of revelation. Don't let his silence be the consequences of your disinterest.

19:11 In this year, 2025, get your hunger back, get your ears back, and get your fire back. Let's pray. Lord, forgive me for growing numb to your voice. Forgive me for going through the motions without truly seeking you. Reignite my reverence. Restore my hunger. Speak again, and I will listen. In Jesus' name, amen. This has been Faith on the Go with your host, Connie Morris. Don't settle for silence when you were created for intimacy. Don't let familiarity keep you out of fellowship.

19:52 Be sure to subscribe, leave a review, and share this with someone who's been stuck in a spiritual dry season. Connect with me in the Diary of the Black Woman podcast on Instagram or X and visit Diary of a Black Woman LLC for more resources to help you hear again. A copy of this series, there's 84 different mini stories about familiarity. I think you might want to download it just for your references to help you here again. Until next time, stay sensitive, stay surrendered, and keep walking with faith on the go.