Listen as Dr. Stanley introduces this incredible account from the book of Exodus, and shares stories from his own life about moments when God spoke to him clearly and dramatically. These experiences may not be audible or visual, and they’ll be different for everyone, but God will speak to those who are willing to listen.
when is the last time you felt God speak
to your heart very specifically about
something you asked him about maybe
never
but maybe often now text is about how
God spoke to Moses and so he spoke
through a burning bush and so I titled
this message burning bushes and here’s
the reason I think about in my own life
how God has spoken to get my attention
oftentimes it is coming times
unexpectedly and personally to me about
something in my life
challenged me to trust him in an area
maybe that was a little difficult each
has had a powerful and lasting impact on
my life
so I want you to turn to Exodus chapter
3 and look at the burning bush and how
God spoke to Moses in this third chapter
of Exodus now Moses was pastoring the
flock of Jethro his father-in-law the
priest of Midian and he had led the
flock to the west side of the wilderness
and came to Horeb the mountain of God
which we called Sinai the angel of the
Lord appeared to him in a blazing fire
from the midst of a bush and he looked
and behold the bush was burning with
fire yet the bush was not consumed so
Moses said I must I must turn aside now
and see this marvelous sight while the
bush is not burned up when the Lord saw
that he turned aside to look God called
to him from the midst of the bush and
said Moses Moses and he said Here I am
then he said do not come near here
remove your sandals from your feet for
the place on which your standing is holy
ground he said also I am the God of your
father the God of Abraham
he got of Isaac they got of Jacob then
Moses hid his face but he was afraid to
look at Yad now I want you to think
about something I want you to think
about the fact that God still speaks to
us the day he speaks primarily through
his word but that’s not the only way and
so what I want to do is to give you a
few examples of how God has spoken in my
own life which I call burning bushes for
me everybody’s is not the same he
doesn’t have the same message but these
are life-changing situations and
circumstances and I call them burning
bushes for the simple reason they came
unexpectedly to me I did not ask for
them secondly they challenged me to
fully trust the Lord and obey Him in a
given situation and thirdly each has had
a powerful and lasting effect on my life
not only my life but also people around
the world so when we think about burning
bushes think about those times when God
has specifically said something to you
maybe you ignored it maybe you said well
that couldn’t possibly be God or maybe
you said it well yes that is but if you
felt God had spoken to you what did you
say to him how did you respond so
remember this I’m not expecting
everybody to have the same kind of
experiences I’ve had but these are
burning bushes in my life because there
were moments that made a very distinct
difference that is less that all these
years and so when I begin I want to
begin with this story first of all I was
in my second year in seminary and I was
doing pretty good and so I was thinking
about the future and what God wanted and
so forth and I was then praying one
night and we had a living room and just
a small apartment and I had a place to
pray over in a corner and I have I met
that my mother made me out of to pray
and so that’s where I prayed
and the one that I was praying and God
spoke to my heart very clearly and
here’s what he said whatever you
accomplish in life you will have to
accomplish on your knees not by your
preaching
not by your positions everything you
ever accomplished in the ministry you’ll
accomplish on your knees
that’s my pattern for you and I can look
back over these years and realize time
at the time after time when I faced very
very difficult situations that’s where I
went to my prayer mat asking God to give
me direction and I could think of a lot
of things to tell you about there were
very difficult situations in my life
very difficult but I never forgot that
whatever you accomplish in life you’ll
accomplish on your knees that was just
this telling to me it’s what God said to
Moses God is still speaking today
sometimes he speaks strictly to his word
sometimes he speaks in other ways I was
in Bartow Florida
I moved from Fruitland to Ohio to Miami
and dentals Taylor Bartos in Florida and
I was just happy as a lark there and it
was just a fantastic place and so I was
happy there I was up in Alexandria
Virginia preaching a revival and I came
home each night from the meeting and we
were having a good meeting and people
being saved and lives are being changed
and I came very night and I was troubled
in my heart so I said what’s this all
about Lord I mean your blessing and
you’re doing what I’ve asked you to do
and what’s this all about
well three nights I went to prayer
asking God
kneeling down before the word
by the bed and saying Lord what are you
saying to me why am I so trouble what’s
going on that I don’t know about the
fourth night I came back knelt down by
the bed and began to pray and I said
Lord what are you saying to me it’s like
God said to me I’m gonna move yeah I
thought well I’ve only been in bar 2 11
months 11 months and then I asked the
question Quinn I can see this as good as
I see you this big screen in front of me
the lower left-hand corner to the top
right corner and big bold black letters
September this was April I thought well
what’s that all about I’ve only been
here Lord yeah you know even bring me
all the way from Miami
the Bartow and tell me to leave in in
September so I just tried to pray my way
through that next night I came home came
back to the hotel y’all down to pray and
it’s like God was a thousand miles away
I couldn’t pray I tried to pray as
nothing where was God so I came home on
a Saturday morning and I told my wife
about it and so we didn’t think much
more about it Monday morning at nine
o’clock
Felix Snipes who was a member of First
Baptist this church he passed away two
or three years ago he was on the phone
he said Charles’s Phoenix and we talked
because I’d been in revivals with him
when he led the music so fall he was
great at that and then of course of our
conversation he said I want to talk to
you about something you never thought
about I said what’s that Felix he said
we need an associate pastor at first
maybe Sloane I said forget it I have no
interest in you’re into Atlanta and
especially do I not have any interest
and yearn to the First Baptist Church
I said I wouldn’t fit don’t even talk
about it he said well would you pray we
talked on he said well would you pray
about it I said yes I’ll pray about it
so finally be hung up the phone when I
hung up the phone I broke out crying and
to make a long story short September the
30th I moved to Atlanta now just God
speak to everybody the same way no he
doesn’t and I certainly understand that
and no question in my mind about that
and then for example probably one of the
biggest challenges in my life I had come
to Atlanta to be the associate pastor
and I began to preach then around due to
priests and God began to bless he bless
then he blessed my only responsibility
was to preach on Sunday night that was
my responsibility well the pastor was
gone most of the time on Sunday morning
so I ended up reaching Sunday morning
Sunday night so these seven men ran
everything and they had a meeting and I
was sitting with him and had no say and
one of those meetings this is what they
said they were trying to figure out
something and couldn’t decide what to do
finally I said well why don’t we pray
about it I can still see this man he was
an attorney he was sitting to my right
he said this is business leave God out
of this when he said that the hammer
came down for me I didn’t say a word I
just started praying well lord I know
how you send me for the next year people
began to join the church and church
began to grow and then after a little
while the war started they decided they
had to get rid of me because I did not
adhere to what these seven men who ran
everything he did they controlled
everything then we were gonna have a
business meeting to vote to fire me and
that Sunday morning was probably one of
those bushes that I’m talking about
because they were gonna vote on
Wednesday and so I had to preach from
that Sunday morning
that’s anyone I had no Simon and it’s
probably the most trying moment in my
life he had a whole bunch of people who
were getting a devote against me on
Wednesday and I had to preach on Sunday
morning but I didn’t have a message and
I kept thinking Lord Shirley and I would
thumb through the scriptures thinking
about maybe find something and nothing
ever happened nothing ever came up and
I’m sitting there thinking the choirs
getting ready saying I don’t have a
sermon here sitting all my enemies and I
don’t have a sermon so they’re gonna say
see he can’t preach and so the choir
sang they sat down I opened up walked up
and opened up the Bible and it flipped
open to this verse trust in the Lord
with all your heart lean not to your own
understanding in all your ways
acknowledge him and he’ll make you paths
straight and then I just exploded with
the Word of God for about 35 minutes
people start getting up coming down
there I want to join the church people
getting up leaving because they didn’t
like what I said and it was just all
this going on and on and on well they
were very upset and so they had the
meeting and so I slipped in the side
over under the balcony in the dark when
nobody knew I was there and so I turned
to a passage of Scripture and I just
said then I thought Lord I’m not
naturally I’m not gonna say anything I’m
just gonna watch how this happens
because they said you know it’s all
against you there is no way in the world
you to win and I sat there and i kept
thumbing through the scripture and then
praying okay lord you speak to my heart
i can’t
to this verse no weapon formed against
you will prosper every tongue the
accuses you in judgment you will condemn
this is the heritage of the servants of
the Lord and their vindication is from
me to fails the Lord
Isaiah 54 verse 17 no weapon formed
against you shall prosper so I said over
then listening them over and over and
over they got up until why they needed
to have a new pastor but here’s the
interesting thing not one person who
stood up said one negative thing about
me and I’m sitting on top thank you my
lord if I was trying to get rid of me
here’s what I’d say another one of my
what did God say no weapon formed
against you or prosper so we voted and
of course God gave me the position which
I’m grateful for for all these years
so the question of does God speak he
speaks in his own ways and he doesn’t
speak to us all the same way but
listening he’s willing to speak to you
if you’re willing to listen and if
you’re willing to be over listen he’ll
give you a little bit and give you the
opportunity to obey Him or he’ll give
you the full story if you’re willing to
obey Him and have always been willing to
obey Him not at first then I would
mention one other Sunday God knows how
to get my attention
one other Sunday no sermon Monday work
Tuesday with by Thursday I still know
where I’m going and I’m pretty well into
it and I thought and I’m the pastor
mountain and and then no sermon so
Saturday morning
no sermon at noon no sermon two o’clock
no sermon now I’m praying and asking I’m
not doing something else instead of
praying and asking God to show me what
this is all about six o’clock in the
evening no message and so I said god
what in the world are you doing tomorrow
I don’t have anything yeah you shut my
mouth I fell on the floor and I
stretched that and I thought yard
whatever it is please tell me here’s
what he said to me and we were just the
beginning at that time you must never
ask for one penny on television or do
you must trust me to decide how far and
wide this ministry goes you never to ask
for money and I said okay God you have
my commitment I never will I never have
we’re all over the world he had kept his
promise
then I’ll give you one other
illustration I was the Southern Baptist
Convention was in great turmoil and so
they wanted to put me up a president I
said no absolutely not had no interest
in it to begin with don’t allow don’t
even know how to be the president
convention so a group of us met and we
prayed and prayed and prayed and there
was a little lady there who was a
missionary
she was 83 years of age so we met
together and she had the rest of us were
pastors over that seven eight of us and
she was sitting right beside me and so
we were gonna pray and she said she said
Charles Stanley get on your knees and
repent of your sins I can still remember
that it wasn’t funny then because we all
got down to pray and we prayed and she
prayed for me I still remember her it’s
calling me Charles Stanley and so we all
left and went back to our hotel room and
I was this thing to bet on saying thank
you Lord that’s over praise God I don’t
have to do this no matter what they
think the next morning I got up I can
still see this in my mind I got dressed
walk toward the door reach for the
doorknob it’s like God said do not touch
that doorknob until you willing to obey
me
I melt the end of the bed and began to
even I rep the wall because number one I
was afraid I didn’t know how to be the
president of the convention I didn’t
want to be and I had many many many many
people who are absolutely against me and
so I had legitimate reasons for saying
no but in God’s eyes hidden except that
I went back to that same room and
finally they said Stanley are you gonna
be obedient on our
I said yes I am and I tell them why I
won the election and so I was simply
being obedient to God was I still afraid
yes I was I’m simply saying this if you
listen to God he will do things that you
don’t expect and he’ll do things you
don’t want him to do but you have to
decide whether you’re going to be
obedient or not so I could give you an
illustration of the illustration of
things but what I wanted you to see is
each time I got direction I’m listening
to God here’s what I want you to
understand I want you to understand this
you God is just as willing to speak to
you as he is me you listen you God has a
plan for you just he does me and
sometimes we think well only God
wouldn’t speak to me yes he will he will
if you listen to him and probably most
of the people in here have something
they’re talking to God about some
decision you’re willing to talk to God
about watch this carefully you have the
Holy Spirit living inside of you who is
just as willing to speak and make clear
to you his voice as he is to anybody
else a burning bush does not have to be
something with literal fire the burning
bush is a crucial critical decision
you’re trying to make in your life you
want to make the right one and so you
ask God until he gives you clear
direction you said well watch this now
you say well I prayed and prayed and
prayed is what I’ll discover if I pray
and pray and pray about something either
I’m not listening secondly either I’m
hearing something I do not want to hear
and so I don’t want to hear what he says
there when I think about the fact that
the God who created this universe is
willing to make himself known to you and
to me as individuals no matter where we
come from he’s willing to make clear to
us the next decision we need to make so
the reason I call that a burning bush is
because it was a life changer for Moses
and most of these were life changes for
me and they’ll maybe in life changes for
you if you will ask him watch this
careful if you ask him
and don’t just back off and let him do
the speaking you may not hear anything
for a few days or a few weeks but as
long as you’re praying you linked up
with listen you’re linked up with
omniscience the God who knows everything
and who knows the best and every single
one of us would have to admit if we were
honest God always chooses the best amen
that’s pretty weak God always chooses
the best amen and I remember this when
he’s talking he sees the beginning to
the end when we’re praying we just see
right here but remember this the reason
we can trust them is because we know
that who’s doing the talking sees the
end result already he would never tell
you to do something that is not best for
you that’s the way God operates and when
I think about how blessed we are now we
have Jesus now we have the Holy Spirit I
don’t know what you’re facing in life
but this I know you have a God who loves
you has a plan for your life
you’re not listening you’re not one of a
bunch you’re not one of a group you know
the nobody you’re somebody you’re
somebody for whom God has a plan a God
who is willing to show you the plan
willing to guide you step by step he’s
not gonna give you the full story he’s
gonna lead you step by step because
watch this that’s the way he operates we
obey Him today we obey Him today and
today and today and today and today and
thought you know what
little by little he’ll get us the exact
where he wants us sometimes quickly
sometimes not so quickly what is there
in your life that you’re trouble about
what is there in your life that you feel
a need thought that you don’t have what
is there in your life that keeps waking
you up at night what is there in your
life that you know you need some sense
of joy and peace and what is it that
troubled you what is that big question
mark he said how am I going to find out
the answer
I can guarantee you on the basis of the
Word of God an experience has nothing to
be to do with being a past that has to
do with the nature of God he loves you
enough to show you exactly what to do
next if you willing to ask him trust him
and wait for his timing that’s a good
God is listen one of the if you if you
will do what you’ve heard this morning
maybe in a few weeks a few months it may
be a year so whatever it might be you’ve
got some question you gonna you gonna
see how God’s gonna work in your life he
doesn’t work in everybody’s life is
saying but he’ll working in your life
you don’t have to say well but I’m not
this and I’m not that that has nothing
to do with it what has to do with it is
this he’s God you wanted his children he
created you he has a plan for your life
he wants to direct your life because
when he directs your life and you obey
Him you bring him glory and honor you
become a testimony to people who need to
know that God is a personal God and
willing to answer the petition of their
heart you say well I’m not even a
Christian I can tell you the next thing
he wants you to do he wants you to
confess your sins to him ask him to
forgive you of your sin surrender your
life to him and watch him work wait for
him to speak to your heart which he was
certainly do because the moment you
receive Christ as your Savior the Holy
Spirit comes into your life to dwell and
to live and to give guidance and
direction for your life you’ll never be
the same again he’s willing you ought to
do it I challenge you surrender your
life to Him
and watch him work amen father we love
you in prision thank you that you are so
ready to be a blessing to your children
willing to give us instruction divine
guidance willing to meet our need
I pray that any person who hears this
message and every person who hears it
who is not a follower of Jesus will
immediately right now confess their
sinfulness surrender their life to you
and watch your work thank you for loving
us where the love will never fully
understand that we get to heaven and we
pray this in Jesus name Amen
[Music]
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