“…the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger, in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice.” – John 10:3-5
The Good Shepherd is the lifeline to the sheep’s survival; He leads, tends, herds, feeds, and guards. He leads with gentleness… but is also stern and corrective, knowing what’s best for the sheep.
As the sheep get to know the shepherd – spend time with him – they trust his leading and know his voice.
Jesus is the Good Shepherd. And all who believe that He is the Son of God and that He died and rose again so we don’t have to, are His sheep. The abundant beauty of being His sheep, is that we follow a risen Saviour, who is alive and is always communicating with us through His Spirit.
While we have thousands of messages a day competing for our attention, it’s vital for us to be listening for the voice of our Good Shepherd. We have been entrusted with the gift of God’s Spirit. To discern His voice from all the others, takes time spent with Him, so that we know which voice to follow. We can go through seasons believing that He hasn’t spoken, but God doesn’t stop communicating with us - it’s up to us to quiet the rest of the noise as His voice is often a whisper.
As we begin another week, let’s make hearing His voice the priority above all others. We are chosen, held, protected, dearly loved, and our God is relentlessly leading us to all that is good, pure, excellent and praiseworthy!
“God thank you for your Son, Jesus. Thank you for the gift of the Holy Spirit in me. Protect me from the voices that seek to distract and paralyze me. Tune my ears to hear what You’re saying to me. My mind to know Your thoughts and ways. My heart to feel Your presence and direction. More than anything I desire for You to be my sole focus. I am Your sheep, and I desire to follow the ways of my Shepherd. Speak Lord – I am listening!”
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