Sometimes the stories in the Bible fail to move our hearts. Or more accurately, we fail to be moved by them.

When this happened to me with the crucifixion story, I asked God to please soften my heart toward his word and he did! This episode is the story of how that happened and what I learned.

Pour yourself a cup as we LOOK at John 19:1-16 together.

Resources:

• It Wasn’t Roaring It Was Weeping by Lisa Jo Baker

• Abide: 40 Ways to Focus on Jesus Daily

• Summer in the Psalms Over A Cup Bible Study

In this podcast episode, we explore how Jesus relates to our daily struggles as wives, moms, and women. We often feel busy and unappreciated, but Jesus shows us that he understands. Looking at John 13, we see how Jesus served others because he knew where he came from, who he was, and where he was going. We can learn from him and serve others from those same places.

Let’s LOOK together:

Listen

John 10:1-16

Observe

• V. 1-5: Shepherd

• • Follow because they know his voice – we must spend time with Jesus to know his voice

  • Jesus leads them – he never asks anything of us that he hasn’t done himself (John 13)

• V. 6-10: Gate

• • Back then sometimes the shepherd laid across the sheep pen at the gate. (https://ourdailybread.org/article/jesus-said-i-am-the-gate/) He was protecting his flock and only allowing in who and what he deemed best for them.

  • He also lets them out to find safe pasture and abundant life

  • Zoe life vs physical life (Empowered notes – Lori Varnell)

• V. 11-13: Good Shepherd

• • Sacrifices life for the sheep. He’s willing to give everything.

• V. 14-16: Good Shepherd

• • He knows his sheep intimately

  • We can know him “just as my Father knows me and I know the Father.” Wow!

  • Bringing everyone together (us!) under him.

Open

Prayer–Take time to sit quietly with God, pray, and worship him.

Keep

• If you’re not in God’s word regularly, start there. Join our online study at taralcole.com/join or in the show notes to get started. Start with us in the middle of John this month. There’s no such thing as too late! That way you can begin to know Jesus’ voice and follow him.
• If you are regularly in the word, excellent! Begin to decipher Jesus’ voice from the voice of the world and Satan (the adversary–as explained in a Bible Project video linked in the shownotes). When you hear you’re inner soundtrack, compare it to know what you know to be true from what you know of Jesus' voice. Does it sound like what you know of God? Or does it not?

Resources

• Join the online study - taralcole.com/join

• Our Daily Bread “Jesus Said I am the Gate” article

• Bible Project Video - The Sata and Demons - Understand Evil Spiritual Beings in the Bible