God Speaks To Us

Hi, my beloved church family! I am Shawna Damian, along with my husband, Paco. Together, we have been planting churches in Mexico for the last 17 years, thanks to the support we receive from you all, my home church of The Church at Rancho Bernardo.

As pastors, our goal is to show the Godly path for Mexican people and their families. We see an example of what happens when people are misled, as we look at King Manasseh in 2 Chronicles 33:9-14. The Israelites fell into paths of idolatry, leaving aside the true worship of the One Living God.

First Point: God will never stop warning us!

The Lord spoke to Manasseh and his people, but they paid no attention.

- 2 Chronicles 33:10

We see that in verse 10, God is trying to get the people’s attention and show them they are on the wrong path, as He does for us today. God is amazing when it comes to creative ways in speaking to us, both through the 66 books that make up our Bible, or other creative ways, like when He used a donkey speaking to the prophet Balaam.

Today, in the 21st century, He might be speaking to us through a Facebook post or podcast, even in some secular outlets, or perhaps with some situation in our life.

How is God speaking to you? Are you listening to God's warning?

Second Point: We have free choice or will.

So the Lord brought against them the army commanders of the king of Assyria, who took Manasseh prisoner, put a hook in his nose, bound him with bronze shackles and took him to Babylon.

- 2 Chronicles 33:11  

In verse 11, we observe that when we make our own choice, based on our flesh or the world’s opinion, we suffer the consequences. God loves us, and therefore, sometimes disciplines us to recognize our mistakes and make different decisions, based on His will for our lives.

Sometimes as a pastor, it's unclear if, in a difficult situation, the believer is being tested by God, or if it’s a form of discipline. Either way, through prayer and meditating on God’s Word, He sometimes is giving us the opportunity to correct the wrong to learn from it to make better choices in the future.

Third point: Confession through prayer.

In his distress he sought the favor of the Lord his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his ancestors.

- 2 Chronicles 33:12

In verse 12, Manasseh reminds us of the resource of confession of sin through prayer, and the promise that our prayers will be heard. Without a doubt, this is the part that brings us joy when we see a fellow believer having an attitude of repentance during his suffering; it reminds us of the kind of God we have, who is rich in mercy.

Fourth point: God restores.

And when he prayed to him, the Lord was moved by his entreaty and listened to his plea; so he brought him back to Jerusalem and to his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the Lord is God.

- 2 Chronicles 33:13

In verse 13, we see that God restores His people, but not before seeing genuine repentance in their lives.

Today, we have the blessing of "the local church" as a place where we can be restored.

Small (or table) groups are those "little families" which encourage or console us, and for this reason, it is important not only to attend church on Sunday, but also to meet with our spiritual family during the week, where God can speak to us.

Fifth point: We are responsible for change in our lives.

Afterward he rebuilt the outer wall of the City of David, west of the Gihon spring in the valley, as far as the entrance of the Fish Gate and encircling the hill of Ophel; he also made it much higher. He stationed military commanders in all the fortified cities in Judah.

- 2 Chronicles 33:14

In verse 14, we see action is accompanied by repentance. As believers we can simply trust that God can help us in our struggles. In our ministry, as counselors, we always recommend practical exercises to accompany repentance.

Church, our lives have a great influence on those around us; our prayer is to be used by God to direct our family members on the right paths.

But first, like Mannaseh, we need to set ourselves right, recognizing the power and truth of God equips us.

Paco & Shawna Damian | Hispanics for Christ | Mexico

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