The Listening Tragedy

The listening tragedy describes the catastrophe at the beginning of time. It was a total disaster, a misstep of epic proportions in the history of humanity. It happened because people listened to the wrong voice.

The second of God’s first recorded questions in Genesis.

Here it is in Genesis chapter three, verse eleven: “And He, [God] said, ‘who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?’ (NKJV) (My emphasis)

The listening tragedy happened when people lent their ears to listen to the wrong voice.

This question, “Who told you” is relevant in our modern society as it was at the beginning of time.

The original question God asked records how sin entered humanity. God’s first question; “where are you?” deals with our emotions. His second question; “who told you?” deals with our reasoning ability. We still deal with these two soul issues today.

How do we avoid the staggering outcome of the listening tragedy happening in our lives today?

Confusion rules our lives when we listen to the wrong people giving unsound advice.

Facebook and Youtube confirm our listening addiction.

Listening, yes a listening avalanche is engulfing us! Over one hundred hours of video are watched on FaceBook every day. On YouTube people watch five times what is on Facebook! No wonder we are not listening to each other. Check out this infographic here

There is a lot to hear, most is just ‘noise,’ so choosing what we listen to is of utmost importance.

So, how do we control this addiction? Adverting the listening tragedy from happening in my life, I’ve practiced these three steps. First my disclaimer; I have not always been successful adhering to these three.

Getting rid of the noise must be an intentional pursuit.
Keep conversations within the limits of my spiritual perspective.

Keep your heart with all diligence, For out of it spring the issues of life. Proverbs 4:23 NKJV

3. Practice solitude. My reasoning mind covets silence to cleanse the soul.

A wise man will hear and increase learning, And a man of understanding will attain wise counsel… Proverbs 1:5 NKJV

“It’s not hard to make decisions when you know what your values are.” Roy Disney

So, who has your listening ear?
Are you concerned enough to avoid the listening tragedy?
Who are you listening to when considering decisions you need to make?

God’s question; “who told you” is a simple question with profound implications when considering the choices we make.

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Two statements for lifestyle improvement

I do not want to keep living on circle street by just going round and round in circles. I’m sure, most of us want to plot a more sure road toward fulfillment.

Am I correct on that?

You see I wanted to move forward with my life, having more purpose for growth continues to be my goal. Several years ago I developed a list of eleven statements making me more intentional in pursuit of a life with meaning. Herewith I’m detailing two more of my assertions for lifestyle improvement.

In the last post, I wrote about my ‘three questions for lifestyle improvement,’ of my eleven statements, the first three were the three prerequisites prompting me into action.You can check out the first three of my eleven here.

To a person, we want to stop going in circles, I believe, forever ending up the same place we started, but to go forward is our goal in life. Am I correct in this assumption? These two statements I’m detailing here are about my journey for improvement. Just maybe opening up my walk will help you who read this to make changes needed for your development.

I call these two statements for lifestyle improvement: The Influencers

These are two of my original eleven statements I penned for my life to get off of “circle street.”

I look at these two statements for lifestyle improvement as having the most influence on improving my distinctive personality. These two declarations are where I bring stability to my character and strength to my walk as a Christian man.

4. Apprehend a passion for life.

Apprehended passion lifts my level of enthusiasm for life. I must stop the drifting! Replace it with an intentional, deliberate plan to reach new goals. The key word is; intentional! Pastor David Jeremiah said; “no one drifts towards holiness.” I agree whole heartily, but this statement is correct in my personal life as well. If I want to become a better person, I must stop the drift, and get intentional about what I desire to accomplish with my life. I must lift the lid on my passion and discover what causes me to continue to act the way I do. That is not an easy project to pursue, but pursue it I must.

5. Assure others of my trust.

Assure trust with the reliability of actions that line up with my words. What builds trust is stable relationships. The higher the confidence, the more engaged the connection. Coner Neill, a blogger I follow, wrote an interesting post on building trust. The equation he sights is Trust = Credibility – Reliability – Intimacy over Self-orientation. Take a look at it here.

My trust I have built with others is a highly valued asset. Therefore I must guard it appropriately.

I have made my choice always to be a learner. I take my cue from this Bible verse and accompanying quote.

A wise man will hear and increase learning, And a man of understanding will attain wise counsel, (Proverbs 1:5 NKJV)

“The future belongs to the learners—not the knowers.” – Eric Hoffer

My aim with disclosing the two above statements is to add value to your life. I wrote my eleven statements for me because I needed to evaluate where I was and where I would receive the most satisfaction for my life moving forward.

What change do you need to make in your life for improvement? Has my material interested you in attaining a more fulfilled lifestyle?

I invite you to write a comment or a question in the comment box. Don’t forget to sign up to continue receiving my posts.

Thank you,

Richard

Tag: Lifestyle