Les Brown, a motivational speaker and author, once said: “The graveyard is the richest place on earth, because it is here that you will find all the hopes and dreams that were never fulfilled, the books that were never written, the songs that were never sung, the inventions that were never shared, the cures that were never discovered, all because someone was too afraid to take that first step, keep with [it], or determined to carry out their dream.”

God places in us His dream for our life, then lays out the plans, the steps, and the provision to achieve that dream if we only follow His voice. The number one problem in the world is that people don’t listen to God’s voice, or for His voice. All the answers are with Him, but we choose to go our own way, do our own thing, and listen to the voice of something—or someone—else.

What is listened to is what is followed.

We must tune our ear to listen to the only voice that matters. Listen to the quiet when long periods of silence occur. Listen during the times of rest and times of waiting. Never quit and never get tired of listening for what the Spirit is saying, even when nothing is heard. Listening for what the Spirit is saying leads to obedience, and that obedience can be developed the same as any art form. With every encounter whether pleasant or unpleasant, comfortable or uncomfortable, convenient or inconvenient, there is a divine purpose, and that purpose will eventually be revealed at the believer’s request.