Listening for the Lord's Voice

Listening for the Lord’s Voice

The Lord Jesus says, "My sheep hear my voice and they listen to me." The Johannine evangelist records these words from the lips of our Lord as He discourses about His identity as the "Good Shepherd" who willingly gives His life in exchange for the lives of the sheep.  The Good Shepherd appraises His sheep's lives to be invaluable.  In Luke's version of this story, the Good Shepherd leaves ninety-nine sheep to pursue only one who wanders inexplicably from the fold.  What an incalculable appraisal when we consider the shepherd's willingness to sacrifice potentially ninety-nine percent of his flock in exchange for preserving a mere one percent.  How lavish is the Lord's love for His children.  Nonetheless, I surmise the singly lost sheep immediately heard the Lord's voice when He pursues him.  Presumably, the ninety-nine obey His voice and remain where He tells them to stay until His return.  Whether fleeing from the Lord's presence or remaining next to Him in silent obedience, His disciples listen faithfully and diligently for His voice.

Listening for the Lord's voice can be rather difficult given the multiplicities of contemporary daily distractions.  My son is basketball player and avid fan of the game.  This season, I attended nineteen of his twenty-two regular season games plus two play-off games.  As the season progressed and the desire for post-season play increased, the attendance, competition and noise level in the gyms increased commensurately.  Interestingly, parents appeared more emotionally invested in these games than the players and their coaches.  I sat next to many fathers, uncles, older brothers and cousins who fiercely yell directions to the players;  it is as if they are NCAA Division I coaches.  Compounding these relatives’ loud voices, the crowd is full of “experts” who equally and intensely yell directions to the players.  In the midst of this cacophony of enthusiasm, anger, fear, anxiety, loyalty, dreams, goals and hopes, the actual coaches struggle to encourage and empower their players and students to actualize their talents and natural endowments.  The players must find a way to hear and listen to their coaches despite the countless, high pitched voices they hear in the background.  Similarly, disciples strive to listen to the Lord’s voice and guidance in the midst of life’s busyness and daily noise.

As a loyal father of a player, I sit in bewilderment wondering how the players learn to ignore the crowd and listen intently to their coach’s voice.  The drama and intensity of the setting would confuse me.  Actually, it might paralyze me as I would not know what to do.  Somehow, basketball players can hear their coach’s voice above the crowd!  His words, “Pick and roll or cut left,” yield their obedience although someone else may scream the exact opposite.  Players develop the character, courage and consideration to esteem the coach’s instructions above those of fathers, other relatives and close friends.  My son informs me discipline is the key to learning to ignore the crowd.  Because of the time that players spend in practice with their coach, they develop a relationship with him and learn to trust his counsel and wisdom.  They accept him and his knowledge of the game of basketball.  They realize their coach knows more about the science of the game than an amateur fan whose knowledge does not extend beyond anything he watches on television or gleans from casual conversations with friends.  As a consequence, it does not matter how loudly a person in the bleaches yells; his words are a mere impression of what he suspects might be helpful.  Players rely forthrightly on the trustworthy relationship and experiential knowledge they acquire from practices with their coach.

A thorough non-athlete who was never picked for any of the neighborhood teams in pick-up games during childhood, I have been spared the preceding dilemma.  Yet, it resembles the challenge I face daily as a disciple of the Lord.  How do I listen intently for His voice amongst the competing voices of our rapidly advancing scientific, technological, pluralistic and global community?  In a culture that celebrates narcissism, worships at the altar of hedonism and esteems the self-seeking motives of capitalism, how do disciples obey “The Great Commandment” and the other biblical commands of Christ?  Obedient and loyal basketball players offer a significant clue.  Just as they cultivate discipline to hear and obey their coach’s voice and ignore the crowd’s uninformed opinions because of their relationship with their coach, discipline gain when they invest time and energy in building a greater relationship with the Lord.  With the daily practice of spiritual disciplines, disciplines learn the distinct sound of the Lord’s voice.  As they spend time with Him in accordance with the Psalter’s suggestions (Psalm 27:4, Psalm 42, and Psalm 46:10), disciples develop unwavering trust in the Lord.  They experience His faithfulness as both a shield and rampart, offensive and defensive weapons (Psalm 91:4).  Mostly and simply, they learn to listen to His voice and obey His will regardless of numerous competing and contrary voices.