“When all the noise is gone there is only God.”

We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness.  God is the friend of silence.  See how nature - trees, flowers, grass - grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence.... We need silence to be able to touch souls.  ~Mother Teresa

(Gospel Text: JN 10:27-30)

Jesus said:

“My sheep hear my voice;

I know them, and they follow me.

I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish.

No one can take them out of my hand.

My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all,

and no one can take them out of the Father’s hand.

The Father and I are one.”

The evidence is clear: some people follow the Good Shepherd's call while others, do not. Some react with anger at the announcement of the Gospel while others jump with joy at the news. What do the latter have the former do not? Saint Augustine would answer: «God does not leave you, if you do not leave him»; He will not forsake you if you do not forsake him. Do not therefore put the blame on God, or the Church or on others. God does not deny anyone his grace, and this is precisely our strength: strongly stick to God's grace. It is no merit of ours; it is simply a gift.

Faith enters us through our ears, by listening to the Word of the Lord, and the greater risk we run is our own deafness, to miss the Good Shepherd's voice, because our head is full of noise and other dissonant voices. Or even worse, what in Saint Ignatius' Spiritual Exercises calls «to turn a deaf ear», to know God is calling you and pretend not to hear it. He who consciously and repeatedly closes his ears to God's call, is no longer in tune with Jesus and will also lose the joy of being a Christian, to go “grazing” in other pastures that neither satiate nor give eternal life.

So why does it matter so much what everyone is saying?

We often want acceptance and bonding with our brothers and sisters, but it is important to remember that no matter what the world says, God ultimately decides what is right and wrong. It is then for us to accept and follow God, or refuse him. We do this not by words but by the way we live our life.

So today, don’t be afraid to take a stand on what you believe. Remember that God is the ultimate judge of right or wrong, and that he loves you personally.

Listen to His voice……………….