RECEIVING INSTRUCTION

The Psalmist writes, “I will bless the Lord who counsels me; he gives me wisdom in the night. He tells me what to do.” The Living Bible

Many times it is very difficult to hear the instruction of the Lord because we have the conflict of other voices (messages) that we are sorting. Whether we hear during the night or day… we often have to test the words we hear and sort through them for clarity.

I think this is especially true in the words of E.E. Cummings about living in a world that “is doing its best, night and day, to make you everybody else.”  As soon as we hear something we are forced to fight away the impulses of the world and retain the impulse to hear and obey the Lord. With practice… we clearly can tell the difference and know when we are receiving instruction (being told what to do) by the Lord.

“The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice and come to him; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. He walks ahead of them; and they follow him, for they recognize his voice. They won’t follow a stranger but will run from him, for they don’t recognize his voice.” Jesus