tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5594674.post-68120947193090905002007-09-17T20:45:00.001-06:002007-09-17T20:50:31.669-06:00<h2>Voices</h2> Sunday, Barbara and I were driving back home from New Orleans. I had my iPod plugged in and I was listening to <a href="http://www.kelly-sweet.com/index.php" target="resource">Kelly Sweet.</a> She has a silky smooth, breathy, angelic voice and as I listened to her, some thoughts occurred to me. I thought about how amazing is a voice. Kelly's voice is beautiful, but there are many pleasant voices and all different and unique. It seems a miracle to me that our ears can discern someone's identity by listening to the sound of a voice. Then after our ears hear the voice, our minds can comprehend the meaning they convey. Both the package and the content can impact us greatly Some voices may be sweet, but they are trying to deliver poison, while other less pleasing voices may convey untold treasures. I thought about how often the thing that is beautiful to our senses is not always the best thing for us. Like the Sirens that lured the Greek sailors to their death on the rocks, some voices are illintentioned. In the Bible, Elijah listened for God in the wind and then in an earthquake, and finally in a fire, but God did not speak from those powerful and majestic displays; He spoke to Elijah in a "still small voice." We have to slow down, wait, and listen to hear this kind of a voice. Then I thought about my voice. What kind of voice do I have? Is it a voice that conveys laughter, joy, solace, and peace? Is it a pleasant voice? Like the voices to which we listen; the voices we use are a matter of choice. Think how a few simple words to which you give voice can impact another for good or for bad. Think of the power you have. "My sheep know my voice, and I know them, and they follow me" (John 10:27). Until the next time John StrainJohn Strainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05453617294405385771noreply@blogger.com