Many voices shout for our attention every day, seeking to dictate our purpose. They may not say it in words, but they are clear: “Live for yourself,” “Grab all the gusto you can,” “Earn enough money to retire in comfort,” “Look out for number one,” “Eat, drink, and be merry.”
A young woman, concerned about this issue, went to her pastor and asked for help resolving the question of her purpose, especially when it seemed that her desires contradicted the will of God. The pastor took out a slip of paper, wrote on it, folded it in half, handed it to her and asked her to go to the sanctuary, read the paper, ponder the words for at least ten minutes, then cross out one of the two words, and bring the paper back. When she opened the paper after sitting in the sanctuary, she saw the words were: “No” and “Lord.”
Which would you cross out? Will you hear the Lord and follow him, or the world and not? Jesus returns to the theme of his equal glory to God the Father, so that we will see that we must hear his voice over all others.