A couple of days ago, I somehow managed to take a walk alone — just a 15-minute stroll around the back of our house.

It was chilly, so I wore my heavy wool coat. When I came up the hill of our driveway, our little beagle mix puppy came running out toward me barking.

He didn’t recognize me!

Normally, he takes a walk with me while I push a baby stroller, but that day he’d been busy “helping” the others work in the garden. So I was completely surprised to see him acting like I was a stranger.

Then I called out his name, “Jasper!” When he heard my voice, he immediately quit barking and ran over to me, yipping and showing his happiness to see me.

He knew my voice.

This reminded me of the verse in the Bible about the sheep knowing the voice of the Shepherd. I looked it up, and here it is:

My sheep recognize my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them away from me, for my Father has given them to me, and he is more powerful than anyone else. So no one can take them from me. The Father and I are one.

John 10:27-30
New Living Translation

Do I know my Master’s voice? When He calls me, do I listen and follow Him? If Christ is truly Lord of my life, then I’ll want to stay near Him, so I can continue to hear His voice calling me.

The best way for me to do this is to keep reading from my Bible every day. Little by little. Some days, I have more time and can slowly absorb whole chapters or fill in a Bible study workbook. Other days, I may be hanging by a thin thread and only have a minute to read a verse and meditate on it throughout the day. (And that’s OK, according to Barbara Curtis — when she had a super busy household of 12 children, she found her moments with God in the laundry room!)

Do you know your Master’s voice? If He called your name, would you recognize Him? If He asked you to follow Him, would you go?

P.S. For those of you who entered Barbara’s Laundry Room contest, have you seen her suprise for you in her Contest Winners post?