I was raking leaves the other day and heard a voice in my head. I guess I’d been thinking subliminally about the church LifeWay CEO Thom Rainer wrote of that had two heated business meetings over whether to purchase a weed eater, and I began to think about the leaf blower I had in my hand. I heard the late Nolin Chambers say, “You can blow leaves around all day long but at some point you’ve got to get them up.”

Nolin was building superintendent at First Baptist Church in Selma for many years and never was interested in purchasing a leaf blower for the aforementioned reason. And his logic was inarguable.

It’s strange how the words of people from long ago can come back into our brains.

I can remember some of the phrases our pastors often said when I was a boy. And I find myself frequently quoting Bob Harrington, the former chaplain of Bourbon Street, who was so influential when I was a teenager. These voices along with those of parents, grandparents and Sunday School and public school teachers come back as pleasant memories.

But some voices I can still hear weren’t voices of wisdom or blessing.

Several prominent pastors taught me when I was a young in ministry to exercise pastoral authority. “You’re God’s anointed,” they said. “Your job is to speak for the Lord in all things.” They counseled us young preachers to decide what’s best for our churches and press forward with confidence that we were doing God’s will despite the opinions and insights of others in the church.

I suppose I was mesmerized by these words and early on had some confrontations that weren’t necessary. Looking back I’m grateful for church leaders who were patient with me!

Later I heard John Maxwell who taught us to identify the influencers in the church and persuade them to help us sell our ideas. Working with people can be messy and time-consuming but it’s the right way to lead.

Not all voices are voices of wisdom, and we must seek what the scripture calls discernment  — the ability to determine which words are wise and which are imprudent. The psalmist prayed, “Give discernment to me, your servant; then I will understand . . . (Psalm 119:125).

In the same chapter the writer spoke of the finest voice: “Thy word have I hidden in my heart that I might not sin against thee” (Psalm 119:111).

The scripture we read and memorize is a faithful voice in our head we recall at opportune moments. These words of blessing summon us to make the best decisions and to follow the Lord’s way in our lives.