‘Who’ to Listen To

We have a family of owls who live somewhere nearby our house, and they move from tree too tree, making a lot of noise late at night, even in the winter. Sometimes they sound like humans laughing, other times like monkeys chattering, other time like a baby is cooing or crying. Rarely does it really sound like they are saying "Who" as the cartoons would suggest. Sometimes I try to talk back to them, but they do not seem to want to converse with me. But that does remind me of a funny story I heard. 

One evening, a bird-lover stood in his backyard and hooted like an owl -- and an owl called back to him! They had a whole "conversation." He tried it again the next night, and the next -- and the owl always answered. He was fascinated.

Sometime later his wife had a chat with her next door neighbor. "My husband spends his nights...calling out to owls," she said. "That's odd," the neighbor replied. "So does my husband."

Just then it dawned on them.

Sometimes things are not what they seem to be. The messages you hear, the voices you trust, are not always the truth, especially in this day and age. Some are a little disingenuous, others somewhat deceptive, others downright "fake news." 

It's a dark world out there, and it appears to be getting darker by the day. That's why it is so important that you know whose voice you are listening to, even in the dark, and that you trust what you hear to be true.

Jesus called Himself "the Good Shepherd" and reminded us that there is a thief that seeks to come in and deceive the sheep, "to steal and kill and destroy." But Jesus said that He has come to give us life, and life more abundantly. (John 10:10)

"I know My sheep and My sheep know Me," He said. "just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for the sheep." (10:14-15) And He continued, "My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of My hand." (10:27-28)

I remember an old Amy Grant song from the mid-1980's called "Who to Listen To." The lyrics are still familiar to me, all these years later: "They're gonna hit you from all sides, better make up your mind, who to, and who not to, listen to." 

In a post-modern world that seeks to cast doubt on truth, it is so important that we know the voice of our Shepherd, that we trust Him, and that we follow Him obediently. He loves us, laid down His life for us, and promises us abundant life and eternal security. So His is a voice we need to get to know and listen to often.

There is nothing better you can do in your walk with Christ than spend time daily in His word. I hope you hear His voice so regularly that you can recognize it instantly, and that you know "Who" to listen to.

I'm praying for you, as I hope you are for me, and I look forward to seeing you on Sunday. 

--Pastor Ken