Today’s Reading: John
30 Jesus said, “This voice was for your benefit, not mine.”
Good morning!
How many voices do you hear in the course of a day? I spend a good portion of my day reading and assimilating the thoughts and words of others. I review online news clips, study required texts for school, and process legal correspondence and documents at work. I receive and read approximately 60-100 e-mail messages a day. I’ve not yet taken up text messaging for this very reason. It’s all I can do just to get through the daily e-mail messages and respond. I listen to the kind voice of my supervisor, giving me instructions related to work projects. I have a great supervisor at work; I respect her thoughts and follow her directions to the best of my ability. It is a blessing to work with her. I love to listen to the voices of my children as they call me on my cell, and I laugh with my grandchildren, who absolutely love to call their Granny Deb up just to jabber in baby lingo. I review the recorded messages on my home phone at night and return phone calls. I can hear and recognize the voices at the other end of the telephone line. Of all the voices I listen to each day, I love the sound of my husband’s voice. He has a calming effect in my life. His voice is clear, understandable, and gentle. When all of the other voices in my life bring confusion or frustration, Jeff’s voice is the voice I listen to above all others.
There is One voice that speaks above every human voice we hear. It is God’s eternal voice. He conveys Himself to each of us through His Word, in prayer, and through the beauty of His created work. I listen for the beautiful voice of the Lord each day. I wait for His presence to consume my heart each morning when I awake. He is the first voice I hear, and His voice is the last sound of the evening, as I whisper my confessions and prayers of thanksgiving at night just before I fall asleep. Sometimes, God’s voice speaks to my heart in the stillness of the night. I can hear Him calling in my dreams. I feel His presence ever near. His Word will come to me in a moment of prayer and praise, and I recognize He is speaking directly to my heart. I know that one sweet day I will hear His voice as easily as I hear the human voices of my family and friends now. This is the day I will walk with Christ forever in His holy presence. I will live in a place where His light will be the only light I see, and where His sweet whisper will fulfill my heart’s every longing.
When God cried out from the heavens, Jesus turned to His disciples and said, “This voice was for your benefit, not mine.” The voice of God speaks today, and His voice is for our benefit. Will we choose to listen and hear Him?
Grace and peace,
Deb Spaulding
Faith UMC -
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