 A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope, encouragement and exhortation. <Previous Message · Archives ·  Archive/print editionWednesday, May 27, 2009  Young Kudu from Kenya Africa "My, what big ears you have!" (Photo by Kevin Walsh)  Listen to us share this message on your audio player."Listening Impaired" "Go now to your countrymen in exile and speak to them. Say to them, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says,' whether they listen or fail to listen" (Ezekiel 3:11). We took care of my mother in our home during her final years before she passed away in November 2005. Caring for an elderly parent can be a real challenge, for parent and child, and she had many physical difficulties her last year. We do recall some humorous moments though. Like many elderly she was hard of hearing but never wore hearing aids nor did she think she had any need for them. Once I was speaking to her and got progressively louder since she wasn't responding. She put her hands to her hips and said very matter of factly, "Stephen, I'm not deaf, you know! My hearing is just fine – you just need to stop mumbling."  Now in my mom's case she tried hard to listen and excelled in her attentiveness. To this day I am sure readers who knew her will testify to one of her strengths; that of expressing personal interest in people's everyday lives. She really tried to listen but as she aged physically she just couldn't hear well. But let me extend a challenging question to all; How well do we listen to God and His messengers? I consider a well known preacher who for many years has had a habit of regularly punctuating his sermon, at various points, by saying to his listening audience, "Now listen." Indeed that is such an important reminder. Today's Scripture is a call to the prophet Ezekiel to be a faithful watchman in giving God's message to the exiled people, "This is what the Sovereign Lord says…" He was to speak God's message "whether they listen or fail to listen." In the English we properly make a distinction between hearing and listening. One can hear without listening. By "hear" we mean in the physical, audiological sense. It may even be loud but we don't necessarily listen! My Mom had trouble with hearing, not listening. Some are "hearing impaired" but I'm afraid a lot more are "listening impaired!" The Hebrew word for "listen" in our passage is "shama." It conveys the sense of hearing intelligently with implication of attention, obedience, etc. The basic thought is that of effective hearing. The Expository Dictionary of Bible Words makes this observation regarding this word: "The call to listen to God, which runs as a bright thread throughout the Old Testament, is a call to know what He said, to grasp the meaning of what He said, and to respond by putting God's Word into practice." A wonderful example of this type of listening is found during a period of revival when Ezra read the Law to the people and they "listened attentively" (Nehemiah 8:3). God's call to Ezekiel forthrightly acknowledges that some will listen and some won't. That's a good word of encouragement for preachers and all faithful witnesses today. We may get discouraged at those who show no indication of listening as we seek to earnestly expound God's Word or give a witness for Christ. Many years ago I recall a man who just wouldn't receive from our ministry and quite visibly demonstrated his disinterest. He later stirred up some trouble and left the church we were serving. Today I pray that God will help each of us to truly listen to His message and heed His words as we wholeheartedly serve Him. Let us be on our guard against being, "Listening Impaired" Be encouraged today, Stephen & Brooksyne Weber Daily prayer: Father, it's interesting that we often plead for Your attention and certainly expect You to listen to our prayers and You assure us through Your Word that You hear us when we call on You. But for true fellowship to exist we too must listen to Your voice through Scripture, through fellow believers, through Your many works of creation, and through Your still small voice that beckons our attention. You have so much to tell us that will often encourage us, sometimes reprove us, but always spur us on to good works and needed spiritual perspective as we journey here below. Help us to listen, to heed, and to be steadfast in our daily fellowship with You. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Brooksyne's note: Attitudes that could contribute to being "listening impaired" might include, "I've already heard that a thousand times" or "Not now. I'll deal with that later." Many are deluged with various electronic gizmos that are first priority from the time they rise to the time they retire. Have you ever looked forward to going out to dinner with a friend(s) so you can catch up on each other's lives only to play second fiddle to their cell phone in the car, at the dinner table, etc. You get to feeling like you're much less important than the folks they're constantly chatting with on the phone. I wonder if that's how God feels when everything and everyone else is given priority over our time alone with God where we intentionally listen for His direction. Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources Click on the link to open and play. In some cases you may also need to click again to start the song. "Open Our Eyes Lord" Video "Open our ears Lord and help us to listen" This was a popular chorus we sang back in the 80's in our church services. In the course of preparing today's message I found this helpful resource on preaching God's Word. Today's photo of the big-eared Kudu is found here and was used for illustrative purposes. This is the first time I recall ever seeing this animal. Send a message to Stephen & Brooksyne |
 "We want to encourage you daily in your walk with Christ!" Personal Ministry Update Revised 05/08/09  Each weekday morning Brooksyne and I prepare these messages and distribute them at no cost to you and many others all over the world. Would you please consider a financial offering to support us in this daily encouragement ministry? Donations are tax deductible and will be receipted directly by my chaplaincy endorsing ministry. Thanks! See here for details. (2009 YTD financial offerings through 5/26/09: $4,830.00)SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION  Were you forwarded this edition of Daily Encouragement Net? If you desire you can receive your own free! To receive these "Daily Encouragement" devotionals each Monday-Friday through email see this page to subscribe. This newsletter is never sent unsolicited. It was sent to you because you either signed up to receive it OR a friend forwarded it to you. You can also subscribe to the rss feed.Subscribe to Daily Encouragement Updates by Email Cancel: We respect and value your time and privacy. If these messages no longer meet your needs (providing encouragement) you can remove your address by merely use the link automatically inserted by the mailing list software at the very bottom of each email message. (To change addresses cancel your old address and then join again using your new address.) Weekly Version: The weekly version is intended for those who may not check their email regularly. It is merely the Friday message with a link to previous messages. To receive the free weekly version, send a blank email to this address. Please feel free to pass these messages on! "A Daily Prayer" - A blog simply posting the daily prayer. We keep this up each day since it's merely the prayer from the Daily Encouragement Net message! "A Little Foolishness" - Humor/satire blog (a great outlet for non-serious writing but at times with a subtle message!) Last updated with the story of Mildred Swanson, who joyfully discovers her "spiritual gift" is sending forwarded emails! (Note: This material is satire!) "Clear Minded" - Longer, periodic articles on specific issues impacting the faithful believer and church. (Actually this is my intent but I haven't done much with it!) "Hymns of Hope" - Brooksyne along with two friends made a CD using classic hymns. Brooksyne tells the background story of the 11 hymns. We are distributing this CD without charge in our ministry. All of these songs are also available for download on the site. If any reader in this series would like a CD merely write us and request one.  Daily Encouragement Net is an affiliate of Christianbook.com. Any orders placed to Christian Book Distributers using this link or any specific product link to a recommended resource in a daily encouragement message will help our Daily Encouragement ministry through a small commission on the sale. Thank you for using these links when purchasing online through CBD!Personal Mission Statement "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and I make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and to prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."  How to become a child of God Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version. © Copyright 2009 Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved Daily Encouragement Net Stephen & Brooksyne Weber 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 Contact us |
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