Of these things put them in remembrance, charging them before the Lord that they strive not about words to no profit, but to the subverting of the hearers. Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness. And their word will eat as doth a canker: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus; Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some. (2 Timothy 2:14-18)

When it comes to struggling in prayer mentally and emotionally, it is not just outer things and inner thoughts that the devil uses to distract us. It is also other voices. The devil tries to drown out the still, small voice of the Spirit with a variety of higher volumed voices. There is his shouted threats and strong, yet subtle, temptations. There is the booming voice of public opinion and the reverberating demands of political correctness. And there is also the screaming voices of our five senses and the resounding voice of our own reason.

Every time these other voices catch our attention and capture our allegiance, we become more and more deafened and desensitized to the voice of God. Eventually, we’ll be spiritually ruined by these other voices, becoming more and more ungodly as their influence over our lives spreads like a spiritual canker. In the end, we may even be used by the devil to overthrow the faith of others; instead of used by God to lead others to faith in Christ. 

To avoid becoming a Hymenaeus or Philetus, we need to keep ourselves in the Word of God and stay away from the words of men. By “studying to show ourselves approved unto God, workmen that need not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the Word of truth,” we will keep our spiritual senses sharpened and ourselves super sensitive to the still, small voice of the Spirit. As a result, the voice of Jesus will be to us like a “trumphet” or the “sound of many waters”; that is, it will drown out all of the other voices in our lives (Revelation 1:10, 15). 

Most Christians today have too much traffic on their line. Their prayer line, which should be a hotline to Heaven, is more like a party line, with numerous voices vying for their attention. To truly commune with God in prayer we must zero in on God’s Word and zone out the words of all other clamoring voices. 

THE ROYAL TELEPHONE (Fredrick M. Lehman)

Telephone to glory, O what joy divine!
I can feel the current moving on the line,
Built by God the Father for His loved and own,
We may talk to Jesus thru this royal telephone.

Fail to get the answer, Satan’s crossed your wire,
By some strong delusion, or some base desire;
Take away obstructions, God is on the throne,
And you’ll get your answer thru this royal telephone.