John 10: 27
My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.
Get ready for a year of lots of good news. That is what the gospel is afterall, right? So let us begin here. God has opened your ear (Isaiah 50: 5). So, now you can hear Jesus’ voice. Our challenge for this year is believing what Jesus said. Could he tell a lie? Do you think he did even if he could? So what did it mean when he said his sheep hear his voice? It seems pretty plain, doesn’t it? The next question is, “Are you his sheep?” I like to think you are and if you do answer this question in the affirmative, then I have some good news for you. You can hear Jesus’ voice! I take that back – it’s not good news, it’s great news!
Let me ask you a question. Do you ever tune out your spouse or a co-worker? That ability to tune out background sounds can be very beneficial. However, your spouse probably isn’t all that excited about your gift. That ability may well operate to tune out Jesus’ voice as well. Everyone who is part of Jesus’ flock has the ability to hear him speak. However, some people hear him and others don’t. Why? Some people have cultivated the ability to tune out much of their sensory data. In order to hear Jesus’ voice many of us have to learn to listen. I will confess it took me some time to hear him speaking to me regularly. Even now, my ability to hear him is dependent on my surroundings. If I do not slow down and pay attention, I will miss his communications.
The good news, though, is that we all have the ability to hear Jesus speaking to us. We just have to develop our listening capacity. We have to turn on and tune in our ears. Journaling is one way to help focus your attention and your tuner. It makes it easier to block out the noise so that you hear Jesus more clearly and even easier.
Let’s put this on our goal list for the New Year, to plainly and clearly hear the voice of God!