Listen, Look and Learn

If you have been waiting for this blog update, I myself have been waiting too.  Listening.  Looking.  Learning.

Copious. The cacophony of concerns cry out with abundance and if we choose to listen to them all, our lives may potentially be rendered useless by distraction.

Listening demands filtering, and this guy has found himself sifting.  Sorting through the cacophony of concerns on the table before me I found myself seated in the presence of angst.  Asked to share and talk with members of our youth group who lost a colleague in a tragic car accident last week, while I spoke, I found myself listening to their struggling souls.  My heart was also listening to my God, from whom all wisdom descends, for His insight and care into their aching, bereaved hearts; and, apparently, He showed up.   I find my soul listening as I ponder the walk of cancer my father faces, his voice optimistic as he heads toward a major surgery.  We stand hopeful  for the removal of the foreign bodies in and around his pancreas; my soul joining his optimism, my prayers and requests for all these souls, the kids and my dad, for comfort and healing. 

Looking requires focus, and I have found these eyes seeking discernment.  As I press through my day, abundant are the visual details vying for my eye.  As I scanned the youth, while addressing their grief, I found myself looking to see into their aching hearts while listening for wisdom that would address their struggles.  Much can be discovered as we examine beyond the obvious and peer deeper.  It would be easy to stop short and miss the opportunity to care for the soul(s) of one(s) before us.  As I look at my dad, I find it isn't only his soul and life I see, but mine as well.  While my dad must deal with his cancer, my mind is flush with the mountains of sweet memories, praying for more to come, expecting these to continue. Looking is not only outward, but also inward.  It is one thing to see, another to process.  We see everything around us, but only choose to select less than two percent at any given moment, our discerning 'focus'.

Learning entails the assembling of listening and looking with applied wisdom and insight.  It is our response to what we are hearing and seeing; it is the choosing of what we allow filling our eyes and ears, and the next step, the doing.  As I watch my now seven month old grandson, it is easy to see that he is the center of his world, and I place myself at his bidding when we are together.  He cares only about his needs and his entertainment hoping that I will do all in my power to give him what he desires; and, mostly, I do.  However, as he grows, he must learn the skill of listening and looking.  He must learn to look beyond himself into the hearts of others.  This is the sign of maturing.

Surely as we mature, our lives should focus more on others than ourselves, right?  Don't get me wrong, even as I have shared previously, part of the process involves personal examination, but if we spend most of our time listening and looking at ourselves, the world around us will tire of our selfish nature avoiding us at all cost.  Nothing would be sillier than this 54 year old man, acting like my 7 month old grandson.  Sweet and wonderful as Ethen is, for me to act as he would not have nearly the charm as he.  No, in fact, it would be repulsive! 

So, it is time.  Time to stop internalizing and start, once again, blogging.  It is part of my 'doing', and I thank my readers for 'listening'.  As I look back to these blogs, I find myself chuckling at the transformation in my writing.  The early days were so intensely cognitive.  These latter days, while cognitive, I hope a bit easier to grasp.  For what good is writing without communication?  Surely as I listen and look, I hope and trust that I learn.  It isn't personal intelligence I seek, rather people intelligence I desire, especially, God intelligence.  Looking, listening and learning about the lives of others, investing in their care, as they have and do in mine.  Will you join me in this quest of intelligence gathering?  Will you engage the cashier at the store?  Will you walk with your spouse embracing his or her deepest concerns?  Will you call that friend who may need encouragement?  Send a note or a card to someone? We really do need each other.  I believe it time to listen, look and learn.