The Upper Room Daily Daily Devotional for Thursday, 15 November 2018 "Hearing God’s Voice" by John Cruden (Virginia)

The Upper Room Daily Daily Devotional for Thursday, 15 November 2018 "Hearing God’s Voice" by John Cruden (Virginia)

(Image: Pixabay) 

[The Lord] has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. (Micah 6:8 (NIV))
As a swim coach in the Special Olympics, I have the privilege of working with special-needs swimmers of all ages. Without question I receive more than I give from this experience, which has spanned over ten years. Our swimmers have gone on to compete at state, national, and international levels — often winning their events.
Recently I was helping a swimmer who is blind prepare for competition. We tried a number of ways to assist her, but the best was to have a coach get ahead of her in the pool and talk to her. She could hear his voice and swim in that direction, allowing her to learn and then finally successfully compete. Because she could not see the wall of the pool, in competition we extended a tennis ball on a long pole to alert her that she was approaching the wall so that she would not hit her head as she finished.
God also walks in front of me and gives me direction. While I am not always aware of it, I do know that God is present and caring. When I can hear God’s voice I progress more rapidly, feel better about myself, and accomplish more. Sometimes I miss the “tennis ball on a stick” and crash into walls. Even then, however, I am uplifted by the knowledge that God will be with me when I try again.
TODAY'S PRAYER: Dear God, thank you for walking in front of us and showing us the way. And, when we fail, thanks for staying with us as we try again. Amen.

TODAY'S READING: 

John 10:1-6

John 10:1 “Yes, indeed! I tell you, the person who doesn’t enter the sheep-pen through the door, but climbs in some other way, is a thief and a robber. 2 But the one who goes in through the gate is the sheep’s own shepherd. 3 This is the one the gate-keeper admits, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep, each one by name, and leads them out. 4 After taking out all that are his own, he goes on ahead of them; and the sheep follow him because they recognize his voice. 5 They never follow a stranger but will run away from him, because strangers’ voices are unfamiliar to them.”

6 Yeshua used this indirect manner of speaking with them, but they didn’t understand what he was talking to them about. (Complete Jewish Bible). 

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Today I will listen for God’s guidance.

PRAYER FOCUS: Special Olympics athletes

READ MORE: More From John Cruden
More From John Cruden
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2018 BY JOHN CRUDEN (VIRGINIA)
RELATED DEVOTIONALS: HEARING GOD’S VOICE

Upper Room Readers,
I wrote about my experience as the coach of a Special Olympic swim team. Since I wrote today's devotion, our swim team has grown to 65 swimmers, one of the largest in the state. I am blessed to have a dozen assistant coaches, many of whom have been with me for over a decade. We swim for three hours each Saturday, in three different groups. During the summer, ten of our swimmers competed in state-wide competition. On our team, we stress achieving “personal bests,” with lots of positive reinforcement while still having demanding practices (many swim about a mile total in our practices). At the end of each competition season, we celebrate with a swim meet for just our team. Then we have a pizza party, and give awards to the most improved and hardest-working swimmers for that season. We are a family.
Like the blind swimmer I wrote about in my devotion, many of our other swimmers also have physical disabilities. A few arrive to practice with walkers or wheelchairs. Some cannot speak. Yet they all do their best and support their teammates in every competition. I honestly believe that I receive more from these swimmers than I give to them, and I am honored by their joy, trust, and diligence.
In addition to being a swim coach, I am an environmental lawyer. During President Obama’s administration I was the Senate-confirmed Assistant Attorney General leading the United States Department of Justice’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. In that capacity, I led negotiations with BP and Volkswagen for their respective environmental violations. Following that position, I was the president of the American College of Environmental Lawyers and am presently a principal in an environmental law firm. My wife and I are members of a United Methodist church in our town. My wife has been an acclaimed teacher, a hospital chaplain, and a music director in past churches. We have two wonderful daughters and four grandchildren, all of whom live in Virginia. (John Cruden)
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