The parable of the Good Shepherd in today’s Gospel from John brings into view the power of the voices we listen to in our lives as it presents the reality that Christianity is not a set of ideas; it’s not a philosophy or an ideology; it’s a relationship with someone who has a voice. If we go back to the very beginning of our story to the Garden of Eden, the entirety of the temptation story is one of voices. Eve first heard her doubts and anxieties and then listened to the serpent’s voice, which kept amplifying those feelings. Adam listened to the voice of his own discontent when Eve had risked the forbidden and then listened to her voice, inviting him to join her. What happened in the Garden of Eden still happens today. We listen to the voice of our doubts, fears, and discontent, and the Evil One amplifies that voice and adds his voice of lies and deception. We know that the Evil One tempted Jesus in the desert. He sought to leverage the weakness of Jesus – food for a hungry body, a test to make God prove Himself, and finally, a shortcut to get what He was here to accomplish on earth. But Jesus did not listen to the voice inside Him crying out for the easy path. He did not hear or heed the voice of desire. Instead, Jesus was listening to another voice, the voice of the Father. Sin speaks the voice of the moment, the voice of desire, the voice of want. The Spirit speaks the voice of truth, faith, and righteousness. Jesus tells us whom we should listen to by listening to the voice of the Spirit, who speaks to us through Sacred Scripture. That is what makes us strong. What enables us to resist temptation is not that we are better than others but a matter of whose voice we choose to listen to. Let us listen to the voice of Jesus, who will lead us to a renewed and transformational life with God.