Devotional for Tuesday, March 14, 2017
“Do You Hear His Voice?”
by Dona Hake
Have you ever heard when someone jokingly or not so jokingly says that an individual has selective hearing? I can remember one of our little dogs that was getting up in age and he really was losing his hearing. I found it sad yet it was amazing to me at times that there were certain things that he never missed. One of his favorite snacks was a fresh carrot, and if he heard us get the bag of carrots out or one of us bit into a carrot, he would high tail to wherever we were. But then there were times that I also knew he heard but decided to ignore me (knowing he would get away with it) …I have to admit it was kind of funny seeing a little dog play tricks on me like that.
So exactly what is selective hearing? Selective hearing is the capability to block out sounds and noise. It is the notion of ignoring certain things in one’s surrounding environment. Many times you can see this in small children. They may tend to hear only the fun and exciting things, but things such as “It’s time to clean up your toys, and get ready for your nap.” may not be one of those things that is eagerly heard.
Today let us ask ourselves the question if there may be times that we practice selective hearing with the Lord, and we do not even realize we are doing this. Sometimes bad habits such as this can happen quicker than what we would admit to ourselves. There are times we can all identify where we are reading the Word or hearing the Word of God, and our spirit has been pricked by the power of the spoken Word of God. We just know it was God specifically dealing with our heart yet we walk away and do not take heed. We may go home from church and proclaim what a good word our Pastor shared yet not take heed to it, and apply it to our life. This is indeed a form of selective hearing and lack of being a doer of the Word. We need to be very careful and cautious over our hearts that we are not guilty of this. I found several translations of John 10:27 enlightening so I will share them with you for your meditation.
“The sheep that are My own hear and are listening to My voice;
and I know them, and they follow Me.” (AMP)
My sheep respond to my voice, and I know who they are. They follow me…” (GW)
” My sheep recognize my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.” (TLB)
“My sheep respond as they hear My voice; I know them intimately, and they follow Me.” (The Voice)
The word *know* defined is to be able to distinguish, as one from another. The Lord wants that we KNOW Him and He desires we KNOW His voice! Today I ask you are you listening to hear if He is calling your name? Have you felt a gentle tug on your heart, and you wonder if it is Him? Let us learn to listen and recognize His precious voice and leading in our lives. Today I desire to encourage your heart to be listening closely for His voice. Many times His voice is loud and clear and many times it is a mere whisper. Be quick to recognize it and respond. God truly desires this intimacy with us as we heed to His Words and walk willingly along side of Him as He gently leads us.
