The War For Your Voice

This is the Truth Network. What I am hearing, and let me just put this out there, just to see what your response might be, in a meeting yesterday, the question was asked, do you sense things are speeding up? That was the expression, speeding up. A sense of things speeding up. The question was, do you sense that?

And it was meant to be really a question, not, you know, making a statement with a question. It was actually a question this morning on our prayer call. One of the intercessors basically said the same thing, just speaking in terms of prayer, like an impression from the Lord for prayer, was during this time of escalation of things.

You know, so those two words, speeding up, escalation, basically the same thing. Are you sensing that? Do you feel that?

Because I do. I do feel that way, and I don't think that it is, we have to go very far to find an explanation. The Word has a lot to say about how things actually begin to occur at a more rapid rate. You know, the prophet Haggai said that God would shake the earth, the heaven and the earth. And later in the New Testament, there was another reference to the shaking of all things so that that which cannot be shaken can remain. So let me just put that thought out there.

It's not actually what we're looking at today, but think about that, hold that thought, and let me just say this. I just read something that's attributed to William Booth, who is the founder of the Salvation Army. Depending on what generation you are, you might know more about the Salvation Army than other people, but an amazing organization from its founding, the founder William Booth being an amazing man, really. I was about to say an evangelist, but there were many gifts, I would say, operating his life. So I'll just say this man had a vision for helping the lost and helping those who were down and out and other things as well. Something attributed to William Booth, it is that he said this, and I quote, I would like to send our workers to hell for five minutes. That would prepare them for a lifetime of compassionate ministry.

End quote. I would like to send our workers to hell for five minutes. That would prepare them for a lifetime of compassionate ministry. And I thought when I read that, you know, that would help everybody with everything, wouldn't it? I know it would help me. It would help me to see, as God sees, to be as urgent as he is urgent while we're talking about things speeding up.

Right? Because it is said that Booth believed with every ounce of his being that hell was not only real, but also is a place of eternal horror. Eternal horror. He knew that if anybody saw that kind of suffering, they would do whatever it took to keep people out, implying of hell. Sadly, Booth said he saw prophetically the church losing track of hell's reality. He said the church would become a place of forgiveness without repentance, salvation without regeneration, a heaven without a hell.

Booth said that this, he said all of that in around 1912. And here we are today. And we can really see the value of those words. They are not only true, but even more real to us right now.

So this is something that we're seeing. There is a war in the spiritual wickedness of high places, which we sometimes refer to as the second heaven. That may not be a familiar term to you, but in terms of Bible teaching, there is a place where demonic activity is stirred and inspired. And we refer to that as the second heaven.

We'll talk about that another time. But right now there is a warring in this place where the spiritual wickedness of high places is embedded. And it's a very real battle because the fight, see, the fight is against heaven to doom the creation that God loves to hell.

So in the same context with what William Booth has said, this battle we can say extends to what we've been discussing recently. There's a battle really for your voice to keep you silent in the face of great suffering. To keep you silent while those around you are literally on their way to hell. To keep you silent when you could speak, when you do have the voice of authority and enough personal power to make a difference.

But for whatever reason you've chosen to be silent and to withhold your voice, something has got you persuaded that you can withhold your voice. That you should remain silent in matters of truth. It has been said, there's no such thing as your truth. The only truth that really exists is that which is of the Lord that proceeds from him. And then your opinion about his truth. He said, go ye into all the world, make disciples. So at the very least, what a parent and a grandparent and an aunt and an uncle can do is go into the world that is their family and make disciples of all men.

Teaching them, training them, letting them know the truth. So this warfare is for your voice. And William Booth said, if we could all just have five minutes in hell, we wouldn't really need any more training on this topic. We would be sufficiently awake because of the eternal horror that is there. Again, nothing that God engineered. It was created for Satan, the deceiver and his evil spirits never intended for his creation humanity.

Never, never, ever. The only path to hell is the rejection of Jesus as Lord and Savior. So all of that said, let me just speak to this matter briefly of our voice, because you and I are gaining, gleaning information all the time. Information from Bible teachers, information from presenters on every stage of life, from every walk of life and every part of life. Because we're constantly taking in information and gaining in our knowledge. So these teachers and presenters become providers of information that is added to the things that we already know and believe. And there is a specialty that each of us have, things that we lean into more than other things.

You know, the same concept as having a hobby, the way that you spend your time. There are certain things you just like to do that are informational or a way to gather information, to train yourself for self-training and then adding to your knowledge. So that's why we read, that's why we study, that's why we travel. We're gaining information. So we increasingly draw from these voices. And so the influence of the voices that we're leaning into, that influence comes into us. We take it into our spirit. We imbibe of what is being said.

So it's reasonable then to expect that that information will affect, maybe even integrate into my thinking and my choices, your thinking and your choices. For example, something that's spot on with what the Lord is saying, consistent with the Word of God, and therefore, I mean anything that's spot on with what the Lord is saying and consistent with the Word of God, He has sent that to you. That message is coming to you from Him.

That is not an accident or coincidental. From Him to you. Something sent by the Lord Himself to edify you. Ideally, it becomes revelation, more revelation of Him so that your heart concerning the Lord and His kingdom actually enlarges.

And you naturally then become more like Him. So here's where I want you to put a bookmark, put a marker in the pages, put a holding place right here, having said all of this, that there is a warfare for your voice. That there is the prospect of hell for those who don't know the Lord. And because the Lord is continually revealing to us all of this we've said so far, so right here, just insert this qualifier. All knowledge, information, understanding, and revelation are given to you from God for two purposes. Anything He's given to you is given to you for two reasons. First of all, to bless and edify and to build up and encourage and strengthen and mature you. But secondly, and just as important, it is intended that you digest what He's given you and then you go ye. And you teach and you preach because when you distribute something that God has given to you, you're really living that principle, everything produces, reproduces after its own kind. Actually a very simple principle in life, but think of it here because it's so true. And this principle is the thing we're after today. In life, in everything in general, anything that I take in but do not use then to generate energy or more life isn't healthy.

It can even be detrimental. You know, when you realize you have an outcome like that, that you're in a place where you're only taking in information, like you're being edified, but there are all those people right out in front of you and you are not helping their situation because you won't open your mouth, you won't allow your voice to speak what God has given you and what you know to be true. Again, it's not your truth, it's His truth or really it's probably not true.

It's more opinion and everybody's got one or two or three or four. So when you realize you've gotten an outcome like this where we're just growing stuffed and immobile with all that we're taking in, it's time to reverse engineer some of the decisions you've made about that. You're going to have to disbelieve your own belief system that has really been dictated to you from that realm of the second heaven where that spiritual activity originates to silence you, to cause you to agree with those forces that you have nothing to say and that you will not be heard and that there's a consequence that's unfavorable, even a risk possibly, you know.

Probably all of that is true, there is a risk, there is a consequence, there is all of that. So just back out of this situation to back where you began to believe that, where you stopped speaking and began to withhold your voice and you will find something at that juncture that completely resonates with the forces of darkness designed to undermine the kingdom of God. And I'll bet you probably are one who believes that you promote the kingdom and that you love the Lord. And you know you're going to need to just discern some things right here to make sure that that is the case, that you do love the kingdom of God and that you do favor His righteous cause, discern where you are in the process of informing of you being one of those voices that others lean into. You know the voices you lean into and glean from. Are you also a voice for others to hear? Because this is the call on every believer.

It's the role of the church. You can't be a believer. There's no such thing as a silent believer.

Think about it. There's no such thing as a believer who will not speak the truth in love. So, Father, today we believe you. We believe you. We believe your kingdom is very real. And we believe that your eternal provision for us is also very real. And we understand that the enemy's devices are also quite real and that his warfare against those who have your spirit within them, that warfare is very real. So today we resolve and make a decision to be restored in our capacity to have a voice, to speak with authority, to use the ability and the power you've given us, and to give an account before you that we are instruments of your kingdom and that we have words of life for those who are dying. We have those words of life. We release our faith that way and believe you, Father. We thank you for your Holy Spirit on the inside of us telling us what to say, how to say it and when to say it.

In Jesus' precious, very powerful name, amen, amen. Thanks for listening. If you enjoyed this episode and you'd like to help support this podcast, please share it with others. Post about it on social media or leave a rating and review. Don't forget to check out the show notes or visit acleartrumpet.org where you can subscribe to Shirley's email list. Download the ministry app and purchase your very own copy of Shirley's 365-day devotional, Running with Horses. Thanks again and we'll see you next time.