Who are you listening to?
The Lord tells Jeremiah to make bonds and yokes and place them on his neck. He then sends a message to a coalition of kings: Don't listen to those telling you that you can escape Babylon. In this specific moment of judgment, the Lord's will was for these nations to submit to Babylon.
Notice the voices these kings were listening to: "Therefore do not listen to your prophets, your diviners, your dreamers, your soothsayers, or your sorcerers, who speak to you, saying, "You shall not serve the king of Babylon."" Jeremiah 27:9
Things were already going downhill, yet they continued listening to voices that led them further from the will of God. Jeremiah faithfully delivered the word of the Lord, but they would rather hear voices telling them what they wanted to hear.
Who are you listening to? Who are you allowing to pour into your life?
Today, we have more voices competing for our attention than ever: social media, influencers, news, entertainment, culture, friends, and countless opinions. Everyone seems to have their own version of what is true.
And we may think some of these things have nothing to do with the kingdom of God, but ultimately, what shapes our understanding of truth shapes us.
If we constantly allow distorted voices to pour into our lives, we shouldn't be surprised when we begin struggling to recognize what is true. Like the people in Jeremiah's day, we can eventually begin treating truth as false and falsehood as truth.
So shut off the faucet of influences that are unhealthy for your soul.
And turn on the faucet of Christ. Fill your heart and mind with His Word. Surround yourself with godly influences that continually point you back to Him. Test the voices you hear against the truth God has revealed in Scripture.
Be careful who you allow to speak into your life, because the voices you continually listen to will eventually influence the direction you walk.
-To Know Jesus. To Live on Mission.