Godʼs Nudge

“To him (the Shepherd) the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear His voice; and He calls His own sheep by name and leads them out. And when He brings out His own sheep, He goes before them, and the sheep follow Him, for they know His voice.” John 10:3-4

So often we think we canʼt hear the Lord speaking to us. We are certain He talks to other people, but not us.

I assure you, God is surely speaking to us. Our hearts know it. Our hearts hear Him.

My teenaged son is learning to hear the voice of the Lord.

He had saved enough money to buy four new tires before winter weather set in. One day he left the house, stopped for gas, and then pulled back onto the main road, planning to turn left onto the freeway to get to the tire store. We were glad he was getting the tires finally; heʼd been driving too long on nearly-bare treads.

As he told the story later, he’d had every intention of turning left, but suddenly there was a nudge, a thought, a tug, a pull, to take a right turn onto the freeway instead, heading to a friendʼs house. In that brief moment between on-ramps, he had to make his decision. He went with the nudge to the friendʼs house.

You are probably thinking that he avoided some accident or tragedy, and perhaps he did. We will never know. For the next five days, he had to work and attend school, and didnʼt have another chance to get the tires until his next day off.

On his next day off work, he was telling his older brother that he was headed out to get four new tires. He had saved $500 for the tires, and for a young man who earns minimum wage, this is an indication of just how long he had been depriving himself of other things over the last months.

His brother said, “Hey, you can have the tires I took off that car I donʼt drive anymore. Theyʼre practically in new condition, and they donʼt fit my car. Theyʼre in my storage unit; letʼs go get ʻem.”

God blessed my youngest son for his obedience to that nudge a week before. None of us knew it ahead of time, but when the time came, God revealed His provision. Most importantly, my son is learning to listen and respond.

Lord of all provision, help us to hear and respond to the tugs, the pulls, the nudges, and the thoughts that You place within us. May we never ignore those thoughts from Your indwelling Spirit. Make us careful listeners, though, for we can easily be led astray. In Jesusʼ Name, Amen.