The Sound of the Teacher's Voice

 Paula was the kind of little girl everyone loved. She would come up to a complete stranger with a hug. She always thought of gifts to give others. She noticed and cared how others were feeling. And she was very good at giving compliments.

 However, Paula did have one fault. Of course, her parents had worked with her at home in this area, but as often happens, attending school made the problem come to the forefront. The problem, in Paula’s case, was not listening.

 Not disobedience, but just never seeming to hear in the first place. In exasperation, the teacher realized she could yell Paula’s name across the playground and every other child would turn to look, but not Paula. Was she hard of hearing? What could be the matter?

 It did seem a little complicated. Paula was a very sensitive child and often took flight into her own little world of magical dreams. Perhaps she was so involved in make-believe she really didn’t hear? But she needed to learn.

 Finally, the teacher took Paula aside and had a very serious talk with her. “You must acknowledge when I call your name,” the teacher said. “Maybe you sometimes really don’t hear, but I can’t tell the difference between when you are ignoring me and when you actually don’t know that I called, so I’m going to have to give you consequences every time you don’t at least stop and look at me when I call for you. You need to learn to listen for the sound of my voice.”

 There is little doubt we are living in the final days. The world swirls about us, a sea of confusion with its offerings. What is right and what is wrong? I wish, as some of you probably do, as well, that we could be provided with a book of clear-cut instructions. Do this and don’t do that, and I’ll be fine. But God’s plan for us is so much bigger than a book of rules.

 His plan is for each of us to learn to listen for the sound of His voice. There are many things we can be doing right, yet still have a problem with hearing. It is so easy to go through life making our choices based on what others are doing or waiting to see how we feel. That last bit is tricky. God can sometimes speak through how we feel, but this can also be the result of an over or under-active conscience. This only adds to the importance of knowing, truly knowing, the voice of the Ultimate Teacher.

 The Church has made decisions on many important topics. They are available for us to peruse. But when we go about our daily life, are we making use of those teachings? Do we regard them as the Voice of the Father? Are we listening intently to every nuance of how He speaks? It is easy, and sometimes seems simpler to forget that He communicates with us through the doctrines of the Church, the guidelines, our ministers, and our brothers and sisters.

 Even with all these valuable resources, there will still be days when we wonder what the path forward holds. We will need to search out His whisper. We will need to throw ourselves on His mercy and sit silently, waiting for His voice. “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” (Romans 10:17)

 But we do not need to fear that we will not recognize His voice. If we are in true and humble submission to Him, He has clearly told us that “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.” (John 10:27)

 It didn’t take Paula long to learn to listen for her teacher’s voice after this conversation. We may be surprised how quickly we, too, can learn if we apply ourselves in listening. The clamor of entertainment, our selfish desires, and the many concerns of the world around us attempt to shut out His quiet whisper. But there is no doubt that it is there.

 And so today I long to clean out my ears and renew my vows once again to listen, truly listen. I long to know, to the depth of my being, the sound of my Teacher’s voice. For today. For tomorrow. Until Forever.

Other verses I found on the topic:
Jeremiah 33:3
John 8:47
Isaiah 30:21
John 16:13
Luke 11:28