“QSL? Can you confirm receipt of my message?”… “I say again, did you copy my last transmission? Did you receive my message? Can you QSL? – WB8KMP, clear.”
Have you ever reached a point when there was just nothing left to say? Those who really know me would be hard pressed to imagine it! Sometimes there is nothing left to say because there is no one to whom to say it. So many folks I have visited in hospitals, nursing homes and folks who are shut-in at home have no one to listen and when that happens, there might as well be nothing left to say. If there is a message, even if it is extremely important particularly to the sender, and there is no one who will hear – will it ever get sent?
Sometimes, however, there are people who hear but still, do not listen.
The sender may decide it is no longer worth attempting to get their message across.
In radio communication, the signals are rated as to their readability, strength and tone, on scales of 1-5, 1-9 and 1-9 respectively. A good clear signal is reported as a 5 by 9. The tone rating is used when the communication is continuous wave (CW) or what is commonly known as Morse Code. It is possible to be sending a message to those around you at a 5 by 9 rating and still it is not received. In the old days, a radio station had one radio which was the receiver and another one that was the transmitter. It was possible that if one was not careful he could be sending (or transmitting) on one frequency and the persons who should be ‘receiving’ the message could be on another frequency. No matter how clear the signal no message will be received. The sender might as well have nothing left to say.
The Apostle Paul wrote about such a situation. In his letter to the church in Rome, Paul explained that only by believing and confessing that belief in Christ can one be saved. But he goes on to ask, ‘How can they believe on someone they have not heard and how can they hear without a preacher?’ How they can have a preacher unless the preacher is sent? When we came to candidate class for missionary service, we were often asked how we knew that God had called us to this field or this or that group. When we approached our church initially, the question was how we knew God had called us to missionary service. Often in testimonies to churches, they want to know how we know that what we are doing is the work the Holy Spirit would have us to do. Those whom we have taught, ask for their own lives how they can know that God has called them or that the Holy Spirit is directing them to a particular ministry. Is it a mystical, middle of the night, voice in the dark or hand writing on the wall kind of experience?
It seems odd, at times, to listen as folks say that they are assured of God’s call to a place or a group, perhaps a certain ministry and then suddenly the role has changed, the ministry is different, and for whatever reason the message they were sent to deliver, or at least they believed they were sent, became second to some other calling. Certainly there cannot be any judgment as to how it was or was not received. The interaction between the Holy Spirit and born again believers is only between the two of them. There can be no second guessing of the call it is only between the two. The Holy Spirit is not the author of confusion and there is no tester that lets one know whether the call was properly received at a 5-9 or if it was a misdirection by the enemy. There are substantiating methodologies but for now, just know that God will make it clear in your head, your heart and in the hearts of others.
What happens when the call is strong, the sense is sure and yet those to whom you completely believe to have been sent turn a deaf ear? They may be declining the message, messenger or both. There were Old Testament prophets who were killed because the people did not want them. Some were killed because of their message. In both instances, the message was not received, at least not initially. Do you continue to transmit the message when the frequency band has gone dead? What about when the ‘listener’ has turned off the radio receiver?
There is nothing as rewarding as truly knowing the call that God has for your ministry. There is nothing as heartbreaking as having those to whom you are certain you have been sent decline to listen. It can even be in good faith that those folks believe their radio receiver is working just fine and is on the correct frequency. It is then that one must simply trust that the Holy Spirit who has begun a good work in you will continue it until its completion. He is invested in the future of the ministries and in the hearts and lives of all those involved. He will see it through. The prophets understood well this issue. Each individual is responsible to God for how he received the message and what he did with it once he had it.
What about you? Is your receiver on the correct frequency? How about your antenna. Without it, you will pick up only static; sometimes not even that much. Either your external speakers or your headset must have the correct connection in order to pick up the signal carrying the message so you can hear it. If you can have all of those things in place which includes a preparation to act upon the message once received; you have begun the path toward fulfilling Christ’s plan for your life. If you are facing the disappointment and heartbreak of having a call, having the message, having prepared yourself to deliver it and then those to whom you were sent have declined it; know simply this – it is God’s ministry. It is God’s message. He will finish what He has begun. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall make your paths straight.” (Proverbs 3:5-6)
Doc Riggs' Ministry Minute 
Received 5 by 9. 73’s my dear! WD8MZA