Listen to today’s devo!

“But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice.” (John 10:5)

Expanded Passage: John 10:5-8

In elementary school, my mother would pick me up every day at three o’clock. I was supposed to wait outside the front of DuBois Elementary School, balancing on the curb until I saw our little red Grand Prix pull up.

“Do not go home with anyone else,” my mother would say. “Even if they say they know me, always wait for me.”

Even when my mom was running late, even if I was the last kid to be picked up, I would wait for her little red sedan to come around the corner to get me. And if anyone asked me if I wanted a ride, I would just say no.

My mother did not take the time to tell me all the kinds of people to avoid—strangers with candy, adults I did not recognize—she just told me to wait for her. When Jesus said his sheep run from a stranger’s voice, he did not tell them all the types of people to avoid; his sheep simply wait for his voice no matter what.

As we mature in our faith, Christ reminds us that we do not need to be familiar with everything that could distract us from him. Instead, he tells us to wait, to have faith, and to run away from any voice that is not his.

Listen for God’s voice and run from voices that want to lead you away from him.

Lindsey Priest is an Indiana Wesleyan University graduate. She likes to read to her kids, play video games with her husband, and refurbish furniture.

© 2025 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.