I love walking in the summer hearing the birds singing. Sometimes I can differentiate between different birds by the sounds they make. I love hearing dogs, as long as they are not chasing me. If we went to a zoo and walked around blindfolded, most of us could identify some if not all, of the animals by the sound that they make. Cows moo, snakes hiss, dogs bark, little kitties meow. I love the creativity of God in creating distinct sounds for each animal. But, sheep and goats have the same sound. Crazy, right? I even listened to their sounds and, they have the same sound. So, if you were blindfolded, you might not be able to tell a sheep from a goat. In fact, I just played a sound clip of a sheep and one of a goat for my husband. Believe it or not, he could not tell one from the other. We had a good laugh about it. I find the same principal in my spiritual life as well. I cannot always distinguish between a Christian and non-Christian by their talk. It is incredibly easy to talk about God and spiritual things so easy that even the devil can do it. He came to Jesus in the mountain wilderness and quoted scripture to him. He could have sounded like you or me. If I want to know if the voice is coming from a sheep or a goat, I need to SEE the animal. If I see it, I can tell in a heartbeat if it is a sheep or a goat. Likewise, we should not be deceived. I am concerned that often we get deceived because a person can say the right things. We must look deeper than what a person says, to what they do. A person’s character will always give them away. If we are following God, we SHOULD look like God, in whose image we were made. As for me, I want to be sure I don’t just sound like a sheep, I want to look like a sheep; like Jesus, my savior. I want to have his character.
