Week 3 | Day 5 | Can You Recognize His Voice?
Command:
Come. Follow Me. Matthew 4:19 (NLT)
Read:
After he has gathered his own flock, he walks ahead of them, and they follow him because they know his voice. John 10:4 (NLT)
Reflect:
I was finishing up the last leg of my run this morning when I saw two runners coming toward me. I noticed how close to each other they were. The path was broad enough for four people to run side by side, yet these two were running shoulder to shoulder. One is speaking to the other. His mouth is moving but I can’t hear him. His partner had her gaze fixed ahead, matching his gait, his cadence, his breath, not saying a word. Breathing...just breathing. I imagine trying to keep up with her partner.
As I got closer, the man gave me a nod, but the woman still had her eyes frozen ahead. This was when I noticed why they were shoulder to shoulder with one another. They were tethered to one another by a short length of colorful cloth. I saw the cloth looped around his waist and the other around hers. I looked at her again. Her eyes were fixed straight ahead, silent, intent. She’s blind.
While the path was broad, the pair decided to be tethered together, as if they were running on a narrow path. They were so close together he didn’t need to speak louder than a whisper. She followed his voice, matched her cadence with his, and trusted that though she was blind, she had someone she can trust to lead the way for her. All she needed to do was listen to his voice, his footsteps, and allow him to gently lead her.
Our ability to recognize Jesus’ voice depends on our relational proximity to him. We are, more often than not, spiritually blind. But much like the blind runner, we can tether ourselves to Jesus.
React:
Are you relationally close enough to Jesus that you can recognize his voice?
Pray:
Jesus, tether me to you so that all I can hear is your voice, just above a gentle whisper. Give me the desire to be in lockstep with you, running in cadence with you down the narrow paths you take me through.