Listen for the "Override." by Elaine Davenport (Saturday, June 16, 2007)

I was riding in my car on the way to a prayer meeting. Just before going into the gas station, I was led to make a quick telephone call. I said a few words and said goodbye and laid the phone down abstractly. I arrived at the station pump almost immediately thereafter and jumped out and put gas in the car. Within minutes, I was back on the road and then I heard a voice clearly. It said: "You lost your phone." I became interested, not alarmed. Then another voice: "You lost it when you jumped out of your car. You need to get it. I began to imagine it on the ground and who might or might not see it. I even imagined whether it might be turned into the station and whether it would be there when I went back to get it. About that time, I was at least a mile away and near my freeway ramp which would take me even farther away. I was actually looking for a place to pull over. It's funny now. And then I heard it.

A Small Voice...

"Your phone is in your purse." It was calming and reassuring. I've heard the voice of reason before. I decided to trust it, but soon I found myself reaching for my purse to look inside. It's a huge purse with big dark pockets that don't allow for light. Traffic only allowed me to put it down.

I recalled John 10 verses 1-4:

“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter by the door into the fold of the sheep, but climbs up some other way, he is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is a shepherd of the sheep. To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he puts forth all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. A stranger they simply will not follow, but will flee from him, because they do not know the voice of strangers.”

It was clear. That voice I call the Override.


In the supermarket, when the cashier rings up your groceries and makes a mistake, they have to call for the "Override" key or the person with the authority to correct the error. The cashier yells out: "OVVERRIDE, but the person who comes usually comes quietly to fix it. I've watched this scenario many times in my life. Perhaps you have as well.

When I'm uncertain of my proposed course, I ask the Lord to order my steps. I realize that there are more than one voice, but I listen for the override. Staying close to God allows me to know the voice when I hear it.