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Friday, April 10, 2015

Sheep
Photo by Doris High, a local friend.

"Knowing His Voice"

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"He calls His own sheep by name. His sheep follow Him because they know His voice" (John 10:3,4).

Anyone who uses a computer, and that's probably all of us, knows the challenge of thwarting the many annoying, disgusting and malicious attacks that come in a variety of ways. We need firewalls, virus detection, content filters, spyware protection, junk email filters and no telling what else depending on how you customize your computer. In spite of varied types of preventive measures the attacks continue.

MalwareI am now dealing with an annoying pop-up that ominously states, "Your PC may be At Risk". Sometimes it covers all my windows and I have to restart the computer just to get rid of it. Since I am the IT department for Daily Encouragement Net I am rather ill equipped to fix it.

These unwelcome intrusions are often revolting and relentless in its attempt to capture our attention and get us off the right path. And these intrusions come in many ways, not just the computer. It's similar in the spiritual realm, where our "enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour!" (1 Peter 5:8).

Good shepherdJesus shared a parable in John 10 that would have really connected with His initial listeners. Many of them would be familiar with the life of the shepherd and the rich Biblical literature that describes God as our Shepherd, first mentioned in Genesis 45:18, and most familiar to many of us in Psalm 23. Later in this context Jesus states that He is the "Good Shepherd".

However, the phrase we want to especially consider today is "They know His voice." One of the most important ongoing lessons of life is the ability to recognize and distinguish the voice of the Good Shepherd amidst the clamor of other voices and noise. The times we live in call for great discernment. Yesterday's message dealt with deception and in our age with so many data sources there are many forms of deception.

We hear "His voice" in various ways; through His Spirit, in our personal reading and study of the Scriptures, through prayer, through the proclamation of His Word in our churches, through godly relationships. But we have a choice regarding our response to the Shepherd's voice. Really, it's a daily choice.

Do we choose to listen carefully and heed His voice, separating His voice among the many other voices and noises that vie for our attention? We desire that this daily encouragement devotional be a little whisper, perhaps at an opportune moment such as a break at work, the lunch hour or toward the late evening.

Are you listening? Do you know your Shepherd's voice?  Ponder this verse, "But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil" (Hebrews 5:14). Today, as we regularly partake of the solid food offered to us through the Word of God may we learn to distinguish the voice of the Master and heed His bidding!


Be encouraged today,


Stephen & Brooksyne Weber

Praying man Daily prayer: Father, as I walk in Your truths, give me an undivided heart, that I may fear Your holy name and heed Your still small voice. Help me to walk uprightly and live more by faith, less by sight so that I don't come to rely only on that which I see with my eyes, but I listen for the voice of the indwelling Holy Spirit. In doing so I am far more likely to follow the truths and principles of Scripture as learned throughout the Holy Word of God. Help me to be faithful, I pray in Jesus' name. Amen.



Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources

"The Voice Of Truth"  Video  Casting Crowns

"But the Voice of Truth tells me a different story.
The Voice of Truth says 'Do not be afraid'.
And the Voice of Truth says 'This is for My glory'.
Out of all the voices calling out to me.
I will choose to listen and believe the Voice of Truth."

"He Knows My Name"  Video  Maranatha Singers

"Slow Down"  Video  Chuck Girard  A different sort of inspirational song that helps us check our daily pace in the world in which we live.

Whiteboard witness
Mike is a faithful man who works at a company where we serve as chaplains. He seeks to get in a witness using "Mike's old-school twitter feed" whiteboard that he displays near his work area. I was blessed by this simple but direct statement.


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Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version.

Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."

© Copyright 2015 Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved

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