Ordinary Time

Pause

There are a lot of uncertainties in our lives. Relationships don’t always last. Possessions can be taken away or lost. Our abilities can change or even leave us over time. Nothing on this earth is unconditional and true.

And yet, over and over God proves that we can trust in the Lord for all of our needs. We can find rest for our souls in knowing that God always does what is promised. God always loves us, God always shows us the path we should follow, and God blesses us when we simply trust in who God is.

Listen

The Lord your God will raise up a prophet like me from your community, from your fellow Israelites. He’s the one you must listen to. That’s exactly what you requested from the Lord your God at Horeb, on the day of the assembly, when you said, “I can’t listen to the Lord my God’s voice anymore or look at this great fire any longer. I don’t want to die!”

The Lord said to me: What they’ve said is right. I’ll raise up a prophet for them from among their fellow Israelites—one just like you. I’ll put my words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I command him. I myself will hold accountable anyone who doesn’t listen to my words, which that prophet will speak in my name. However, any prophet who arrogantly speaks a word in my name that I haven’t commanded him to speak, or who speaks in the name of other gods—that prophet must die.

Deuteronomy 18:15-20

Think

When you are having a problem, who do you turn to first? Of course, we’d all like to answer “God,” but the reality is that we most often turn to a friend or family member first. Sometimes it’s too hard to listen for God’s voice, or sometimes we don’t want to know the answer God might give us. So, God often allows for the people in our lives to be God’s voice to us in times of need.

God puts parents and pastors and friends into our lives that speak the truth into our hearts. They serve as mouthpieces for God when we need to hear what is best and what honors God most. They sometimes say the hard things that we don’t always want to hear, but are better off once we do.

Do you have some of those people in your life? Or do you turn to folks who may not always point you in the direction of God’s voice? Take a few moments to think about whose voice you are hearing.

Courtney Jones Willis

Pray

Dear God, thank you for putting people in my life whom I can trust. Help me to know who I can turn to that will point me towards you, and help me from listening too closely to those who draw my life away from you. Amen.

Go

When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word,
What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will, He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.
Trust and obey, for there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.

"Trust and Obey" by John H. Sammis