The Voice

The Voice is a television show that is aired on NBC.  It is one of a number of shows that try to find that next big singing star.  It competes with the original show "American Idol" and then there is "The XFactor" all giving deserving talented people a chance at stardom.  Those of us who have been around a while will remember "Star Search" which I admit I watched and loved, but it was not limited to people who sang. 

Personally, I am not a fan of any of these current reality shows, but will watch a few minutes of them from time to time.  I often wonder how many sing sensations does the world need.  I usually change the channel because so many times the person who is performing cannot sing at all and is yelling.

I have to admit that I like The Voice better than all the other current reality shows. Why?  It is the format.  The person comes out and sings and the judges have their backs turned towards them.  This means that the judges make their judgement solely on the quality of the participants voice.  Their looks, the age, their race, their gender play no factor into the decision of a judge to hit a button and have their chair turn and face the performer.  Once a judge or judges turn their chair while the person is performing, the individual is invited to be on that judge's team.  If more than one judge hit their button then the judges have tell the performer why being on their team is in their best interest.  Singers who finish their song without a judge hitting their buttons are not selected to be on any one's team and that is the end to their dream of stardom.

The voice is a very special gift, and being able to hear someone else's voice in love is another.  I remembered that recently about a week ago.  In this modern age of text messages, e-mails, Facebook and Twitter, I no longer speak to many of my friends.  We meet on Facebook, or send tweets to each other.  We seldom pick up the phone and actually talk to each other, and the same is true with work.  I was assisting a teacher with a technical difficulty and had submitted an e-mail to the technology department.  A while later my office phone rang and it was a fellow worker from the technology department calling me about the e-mail I had sent.  He wanted to speak to me to make certain we had the support we needed.  He provided instructions, which I later followed through on and the problem was resolved.  I e-mailed him back letting him know that the computer system was now operating  properly.  Then as I closed my e-mail I typed, "It was nice to hear your voice."  It was at that moment that I realized even though I have communicated with this person for years, I very seldom see him or talk to him, and had not heard his voice in over a year.  It just struck me that in that brief conversation we had over the phone about a computer program, the whole experience was so much richer than an e-mail.

There are things you learn about a person when you hear their voice, something that does not transmit in an e-mail, or text message.  The human voice moves us, it touches us, it makes us happy, or makes us cry, there's just something about the "voice."  I think that's why the American TV watching public can support three singing reality shows at once, and if you include "America's Got Talent" then there are four. Thankfully they do not all air at the same time.

In the book of John, Jesus is taking part in Jewish  celebration when  some of his fellow Jews do not believe he is the Messiah as he claims and challenge him.  They want proof that he is who he says that he is.  Jesus had the power within him to do great miracles that would put them all in their place, but that was not his way. He did things very simplistically and low key as often as possible.  He says to them they do not believe him, even when he does great works because they are not his sheep and do not listen to him.  They do not listen or recognize his voice. 

To know God, and to know his voice is to submit ourselves to his will.  If we have to have things our way, then we will never hear God's voice.  If we can be moved and changed by the voice of a talented singer or speaker, how much more can God's voice bless us?  His voice is perfect every time.  He knows exactly what to say to us, how to say it to us, and when.  The problem is so many of us do not hear it.  We are never sit  still or are quiet enough to hear what God is speaking to our hearts through prayer, his Word, and those that love him.

Take the time needed to hear from God.

Bible Verses

Psalm 46:10

New International Version (NIV)

¹⁰ He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth.”

John 10:22-30

New International Version (NIV)

Further Conflict Over Jesus’ Claims

²² Then came the Festival of Dedication at Jerusalem. It was winter, ²³ and Jesus was in the temple courts walking in Solomon’s Colonnade. ²⁴ The Jews who were there gathered around him, saying, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.”
²⁵ Jesus answered, “I did tell you, but you do not believe. The works I do in my Father’s name testify about me, ²⁶ but you do not believe because you are not my sheep. ²⁷ My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. ²⁸ I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. ²⁹ My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. ³⁰ I and the Father are one.”