As the story goes, a lady needed a repairman to come fix her dishwasher but she herself couldn’t get off of work. So, talking to the repairman on the phone, she told him, “Please listen carefully. I’ll leave the key under the mat and a check on the kitchen counter.”

Then she continued, “Don’t worry about my bulldog Spike, he won’t bother you, but under no circumstances are you to talk to my parrot…this is important…are you listening?” she asked.

The repairman said he was and that he understood.

The next day he showed up to fix the dishwasher and sure enough, the big, mean looking bulldog just laid on the floor and let the man go about his work. But the parrot almost drove the guy nuts with its constant talking. Finally, the man couldn’t contain himself any longer and yelled, “shut up you stupid bird!” To which the parrot replied, “Get him, Spike! Get him!”

He should have listened to and paid attention to the lady.

Listening…good listening is something of a lost art these days. I’ll be honest, I’m not always the best listener either…just ask my wife!

Good listening is like tuning into a radio station. For good results, you can only listen to one station at a time. Trying to listen to my wife while doing something else at the same time is like trying to listen to two radio stations at the same time. You end up with a distorted message.

Listening requires a choice of where we place our attention. If you want to fully understand something we must first put away all that will divide our attention and this sage advice is not only applicable with our spouses, family, and friends, it is equally true with regards to our being able to listen to God when He speaks to us in His Holy Word, the Bible.

I’m bringing this all up because I think a lot of Americans have become apathetic and careless with their worship and usage of God’s saving Word. We see a growing majority of people who now simply claim to be “spiritual” while no longer listening to or paying attention to the Bible and what it says. I believe the truth is we have become a nation that follows and listens to the inclination of our sinful hearts.

But despite all this, the fact that God still preserves his revelation in an ungodly world is a constant testimony to us of His grace. The fact that congregations like this are still standing and available for people to enter and encounter God’s saving Word bespeaks of our Lord’s love and desire that all should come to the knowledge of Jesus and be saved.

So, now more than ever, now living in an age where people presume to stand in judgment over God’s revelation of Himself in the Scriptures, every servant of the Lord, those called to faith, will do well to stand humbly before God who has revealed himself in the Scriptures and say, “Speak Lord, your servant is listening,” just as a young Samuel said when God spoke to him.

So, my plea to you would be, if the opportunity should present itself for you to bear witness and you have someone’s ear, share the truth of Christ and the forgiveness of sins he offers, trusting that the Holy Spirit can and will use your words to create or sustain faith.

Remember, our testimony doesn’t have to be eloquent…it just needs to be the truth.

Until next month….

Pastor Roloff