It is good to hear your voice!

In the last week I have many people talk to me in person or on the phone and a line of the conversation almost always includes: “it is good to hear your voice.” (I do appreciate this support.) That one line, “it is good to hear your voice” reminds me of a portion of scripture that was covered in our service on Sunday. The message focused on Acts Chapter 9 where the story of Saul’s/Paul’s conversion was recorded. The title of the message was “Radical Transformation.” What an incredible, miraculous conversion.

As I listened and followed along two scriptures jumped off the page. The first was in verse 10 of chapter nine, the Lord was speaking to Ananias and it reads: “and the Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias!” His response was: “Here I am, Lord.” Ananias knew the Lord. He had a relationship with Him, he knew His voice. I then looked back, a few verses earlier, at the first encounter Saul had with the Lord. The dialog starts in verse 4 with the Lord calling out to Saul/Paul: “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” (Notice the response is a question.) “Who are you, Lord?” At this time Saul did not have a relationship with the Lord. He did not have an ongoing daily dialog. He did not recognize the Lord’s voice.

I talk to mom about three times a week; I could recognize her voice anywhere. I know my dad’s voice. I talk to my wife and children daily, I have a relationship with them, I know their voices. I spend time with God reading His Word and talking to Him daily…I want to be ready to hear His voice when He speaks. I want to respond when He calls: “it is good to hear Your voice.”