God speaks out, but many who hear protect themselves from His voice. They dismiss what they hear as thunder, and then complain that He never speaks to them. The response of people when they heard the Father speak to Jesus was – “The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered, others said an angel had spoken to Him.” John 12:29 In order to get through to hardened hearts God has to thunder louder and louder. He moves from words to circumstances, which are harder to cope with or understand by far.
God speaks through people, but do we listen? When God spoke through Stephen the response was: “At this they covered their ears and yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him.” Acts 7: 37. When we don’t want to hear God, we cover our ears or turn up the music to drown out the noise.
I can say, “I am different; I listen!” But do I? I hear from God on many themes, yet there are subjects where I cover my ears; areas that are too sensitive or where I don’t want to listen. When God asks me to say something hard to someone I don’t think will be responsive, I don’t want to hear Him. If I don’t hear then I don’t speak. By not speaking I become an unwitting participant in the hardships of those to whom God is trying to get through. I am denying them the opportunity of a still small voice and leaving only the message that can be dismissed as thunder.