Begin with 2 minutes of silence and stillness before God.

We got a new puppy in April, and she is our first large dog. The lady we got her from emphasized that we needed to begin training her immediately. At 8 weeks old, I was a little uncertain if she would be able to learn any commands, but within a few days, she mastered sit and ten more commands over several weeks. At the time, we were taking a class, and the trainer held us accountable each week. I’ll have to admit, after the class finished, we slacked on training, and our puppy is not doing as well as she did when we were training her daily.  

One of the first things our puppy had to learn was our voices so she would come when we called her. As believers, we are called to listen to our Shepherd’s voice, which He speaks to us through Scripture. The more we are in His Word, the easier it becomes for us to listen and obey His voice. Yesterday, we read about Jesus being our merciful and faithful High Priest, and today in Hebrews 4, we are reminded that we can approach the feet of Jesus with every struggle, every weakness, and every need in our lives because He can sympathize with us. He intercedes for us at the right hand of God, and He offers us mercy and grace in our time of need. Jesus, in the service of God, offered himself willingly to make propitiation for the sins of all people. He loves us with a love that is beyond our comprehension; He calls us to believe and to listen and obey His voice as believers.  

The writer of Hebrews warns several times in our reading passage against our hearts being hardened. Three times, he instructs us, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.” Our heart is described as our inner being or our core of thoughts, feelings, and choices. If we are in His Word daily and seek Him in all things, our hearts will be able to hear His voice and discern it from other voices that are not His. It is easy in life to get busy and drift from God, but in His word, we are instructed to have accountability partners who will encourage us to cling to Jesus. Hebrews 3:13-14 says, “But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called ‘today,’ that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. For we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firmly.” We are not called to walk alone as believers; God lets us know that sin is a distraction in this life, and we need to be surrounded by other believers so we can encourage each other to hold fast to our faith.

We found a new trainer last week to help us with teaching and instructing our puppy because she was going back to jumping and counter-surfing. Meeting with the trainer each week means the trainer checks with us during the week and will observe our puppy during the next session, so we cannot neglect training. Just like having a trainer provides accountability with our puppy, having a friend who you study the Bible with and walk through the ups and downs of life with is a way to share life with a believer who will hold you accountable and can encourage, instruct, correct, and help you as you incline your ear with a heart ready to listen and obey God. Hebrews 4:12 reads, “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” I pray that you find someone to be your accountability partner or join a House Church to have someone encouraging you in your spiritual life as you seek to hear His voice and obey.    

Take two minutes to reflect in silence.

Reflection:

Use the S.O.A.P. Method to study God’s Word.

• SCRIPTURE: What stands out to you in today’s passage?
• OBSERVATION: What is this text saying? What is the context? How does it fit with the verses before and after it? Are there any commands, instructions, or promises? 
• APPLICATION: How can you apply this verse to your life? What does this mean today? What is God saying to you? 
• PRAYER: Respond to the passage in prayer. Ask God to help you apply this truth to your life and spend some time listening to what He may be telling you.