Hello! How is everyone doing? Going about life’s normal hustle and bustle with interaction of people everywhere? As we know, noise is inevitable most of the time.  Noise seems to come from every direction possible; sometimes suddenly and out of nowhere and it can be so overwhelming to the point it can make one’s head spin!  Clamor can be so overpowering that one can barely think straight.  

   With all of the noise that is going on in the world, how can one even hear God’s voice through the internal and external racket that is within us and surrounds us? How can one know if clarity exists at all? How do we know what God is actually saying if we cannot decipher His voice over all the noise? Is God ‘s voice actually audible? How will I know God’s voice over any other voice?  The answer?  Relationship. A personal relationship. Like any relationship, the more time you spend, the more you invest, the more you get to know the other person’s character, their preferences, their mind and their voice. It’s the relationship that builds a bond, an unmistakable connection-resulting in love.     

   Which sort of reminds me of a mother/child bond. Picture a park…lots of families, lots of children playing, lots of children gleefully squealing… when one of the Mom’s call out to her child “Lily! Come on now, time for lunch!” and Lily (who hears her Mom’s voice out of all of the noise) responds “Ok Mom, I’m coming!” There is no hesitation-Lily knows her Mother’s voice and simultaneously, Lily’s Mom has her ear out listening for her child to respond back.

  It is the same with knowing Jesus. Our relationship with Him determines how well we know His voice. Jesus, as the Great Shepard, has always made known His relationship with His own. In John 10:22-30 it says “Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter. And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon’s porch. Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, “How long do You keep us in doubt? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly.” Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in My Father’s name, they bear witness of Me. But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. I and My Father are one.”

  Do you see the problem? All of those in the Temple did not recognize Jesus for who He was…GOD…in their presence! He told them who He was repeatedly.   Seriously, they saw Him, they heard His voice-but they did not believe Him. Why? Because they did not know Him and because they did not have a relationship with Him-because if they did, they would have discerned the voice of God right in front of them! Amazing, isn’t it? Those were the Pharisees and Sadducees-two powerful religious groups who did not recognize their Messiah… who they were supposed to be representing!

   For those who belong to God (Jesus), you will know His voice by prayer, reading and meditating on His Word, Be assured “Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” (Isaiah 30:21)    

Please continue to join me as we grow together with A Renewed Heart.          

Melody Elias