M
manny15
Guest
LAST EDITED ON Aug-18-07 AT 08:17AM (MST)[p]this week I went to the doctor because I was concerned about my wife?s hearing loss. The doctor advised me to do a simple test to determine the severity.
?Stand fifty feet from her and ask her a question,? the doctor instructed. ?Then move ten feet nearer and repeat it, move ten feet nearer and repeat it, until finally she answers. Then we will be able to tell just how we can treat it.?
That evening, I stood fifty feet from my wife as she was working in the kitchen. I asked, ?What's for dinner?? No response.
I moved ten feet nearer and asked again, ?What's for dinner?? No response.
I moved ten feet nearer, ?What's for dinner?? Still no response. Ten feet nearer, no response. Finally I stood right beside her and asked, ?What's for dinner??
She turned to me and yelled, ?For the fifth time, CHICKEN!?
can you identify with this, Things deteriorate as we get older. I am experiencing it firsthand.
My hearing has drastically changed. I don't hear the edges of words, I hear the middle of the word. Funny things occur as I repeat to friends and family what I thought I heard.
Sadly, we have a far more serious hearing problem throughout society. We have it in circles of leadership from the church to the halls of Congress. We do not hear the truth clearly.
Through the prophet Isaiah, God lamented, ?My servant is truly blind, my messenger is truly deaf.? So many servants, both spiritual and political, seem to be dull of hearing! In order to find the solutions to this pandemic, we must look at the causes.
My hearing loss comes from age and too many loud noises around me, like the massive sound systems surrounding me while preaching for 25 years in stadiums and coliseums. If ever there was an age where we were surrounded by ?loud noises,? it is today! From the suggestive, sensual ideologies shouted by the entertainment community to the distortions pumped over the airwaves by the news media, we are surrounded by noise.
Those who cannot clearly hear the truth purport to tell us the truth, which results in a cacophony of confusing, misleading sounds. The result is hearing loss in the realm of reason, wise counsel and principled decisions.
Our ears have been so bombarded by the arguments and accusations of a congressional house divided and the house of God divided, that it has become extremely difficult to hear. Truth is also assaulted by those with an agenda to verbally assassinate the character of those who speak the truth with conviction.
So what must we do to hear?
If we follow the pattern of Jesus Christ, we see how He routinely pulled away from the masses of people who pulled at Him from all sides, shouting their suggestions and making their requests. He would go up on the mountainside or out into the wilderness. He would go to a quiet place where the only sounds He heard were the sounds in the spirit realm -- sounds of wise counsel, sound advice and principled direction.
We need to pull away in our own lives from the influences and noises of this world and tune our ears to clearly hear wisdom from above. It really is available. Then we can sit down and reason together. If we would just be willing to hear one another, rather than trying to destroy one another because we disagree, we might actually hear a clear sound coming from a source far beyond us and far wiser than any of us.
While I am concerned about my own hearing loss, I am even more concerned about our ability to hear the voice of God. We must learn to hear, so that we can find direction and protection for our country, our families and our own lives. God help us to hear what must be heard and grant us the strength of character to stand up for it.
This Week
Find a quiet place to pull away from the distractions of your life. Read the Bible, pray, and ask the Lord to speak to you.
Prayer
"Be still, my soul, and know that He is God. Father, teach me to hear your voice and speak to me so that I may listen."
by James Robison
?Stand fifty feet from her and ask her a question,? the doctor instructed. ?Then move ten feet nearer and repeat it, move ten feet nearer and repeat it, until finally she answers. Then we will be able to tell just how we can treat it.?
That evening, I stood fifty feet from my wife as she was working in the kitchen. I asked, ?What's for dinner?? No response.
I moved ten feet nearer and asked again, ?What's for dinner?? No response.
I moved ten feet nearer, ?What's for dinner?? Still no response. Ten feet nearer, no response. Finally I stood right beside her and asked, ?What's for dinner??
She turned to me and yelled, ?For the fifth time, CHICKEN!?
can you identify with this, Things deteriorate as we get older. I am experiencing it firsthand.
My hearing has drastically changed. I don't hear the edges of words, I hear the middle of the word. Funny things occur as I repeat to friends and family what I thought I heard.
Sadly, we have a far more serious hearing problem throughout society. We have it in circles of leadership from the church to the halls of Congress. We do not hear the truth clearly.
Through the prophet Isaiah, God lamented, ?My servant is truly blind, my messenger is truly deaf.? So many servants, both spiritual and political, seem to be dull of hearing! In order to find the solutions to this pandemic, we must look at the causes.
My hearing loss comes from age and too many loud noises around me, like the massive sound systems surrounding me while preaching for 25 years in stadiums and coliseums. If ever there was an age where we were surrounded by ?loud noises,? it is today! From the suggestive, sensual ideologies shouted by the entertainment community to the distortions pumped over the airwaves by the news media, we are surrounded by noise.
Those who cannot clearly hear the truth purport to tell us the truth, which results in a cacophony of confusing, misleading sounds. The result is hearing loss in the realm of reason, wise counsel and principled decisions.
Our ears have been so bombarded by the arguments and accusations of a congressional house divided and the house of God divided, that it has become extremely difficult to hear. Truth is also assaulted by those with an agenda to verbally assassinate the character of those who speak the truth with conviction.
So what must we do to hear?
If we follow the pattern of Jesus Christ, we see how He routinely pulled away from the masses of people who pulled at Him from all sides, shouting their suggestions and making their requests. He would go up on the mountainside or out into the wilderness. He would go to a quiet place where the only sounds He heard were the sounds in the spirit realm -- sounds of wise counsel, sound advice and principled direction.
We need to pull away in our own lives from the influences and noises of this world and tune our ears to clearly hear wisdom from above. It really is available. Then we can sit down and reason together. If we would just be willing to hear one another, rather than trying to destroy one another because we disagree, we might actually hear a clear sound coming from a source far beyond us and far wiser than any of us.
While I am concerned about my own hearing loss, I am even more concerned about our ability to hear the voice of God. We must learn to hear, so that we can find direction and protection for our country, our families and our own lives. God help us to hear what must be heard and grant us the strength of character to stand up for it.
This Week
Find a quiet place to pull away from the distractions of your life. Read the Bible, pray, and ask the Lord to speak to you.
Prayer
"Be still, my soul, and know that He is God. Father, teach me to hear your voice and speak to me so that I may listen."
by James Robison
