So I was sitting beside my husband the other day on our new couch and oh how happy we both are that we changed our suite a couple of months ago (but that's another story).
This is a post about encouragement not one about home decor but we just happened to be sitting on the couch at the time this conversation took place.
Ok where was I?
Yes sitting on the new couch happily chatting away with the TV on in the background because we had just watched an episode of one of our favourite series. I said something to him and knew immediately from his response that he hadn't heard what I had said.
Instead he had just presumed what I was going to say.
I stopped and turned to look at him because -Yes, as is quite usual we were both on our ipads at the time.
I accused him of not paying attention to what I was saying but he was adamant that he had been paying attention.
No you weren't
because I can tell from your comment to me after I said it.
But he said
you were telling me what you had told me before, you know I do remember!
But that was the problem
Yes he remembered what I had said the previous time I had talked about that subject
BUT
not what I had just said.
I suppose I had started off talking about it in the same way as before but I did want to consider a different idea this time and he had just heard the start and presumed I was repeating my same previous thought so he really did think he had listened to me and heard what I had said.
This is very annoying for anyone and not just me.
We all like to be listened to and listened to in full.
So I was rather annoyed at him.
In a way it seemed to me like he didn't want to bother talking about the subject again or listening to anything else I had to say on it.
So I definitely was annoyed at him.
Later when I was working on the Sunday School Curriculum for our church I was once again at one of those passages we will often refer to as being very familiar.
You know those ones that when we hear or read the start we are so tempted to skim over because we have read it or heard it so many times.
Well as I always tell people
I can learn something new every time I prepare for a Sunday School Class
BUT
I need to be prepared to do so.
If I decide
not to bother reading it because I have read that Bible passage so many times before that I know all about it then I will not learn anything new.
If I decide
to skim over it then again I will not learn anything new.
If I decide
to read it but not keep my full concentration on it then how can I learn anything new?
Notice that word in each of those last 3 sentences?
Decide
It is a decision we make to actually pay attention when we read.
It is a decision we make to actually listen properly when God is trying to speak to us.
Most likely if we decide not to bother reading and listening attentively we will end up having to depend on our memory of before and our memories are not usually perfect.
Let's not be annoying to God.
Let's not depend on our memory of the last time.
Let's not start talking before we have listened.
Let's not presume we know it all already.
Let's not have the attitude that we don't need to hear from God again even if it is the same subject.
Let's make the decision to read and listen and pay attention.