Listen Up!

Listen Up!

Everything that is hidden will eventually be brought into the open, and every secret will be brought to light.

Mark 4:22

Raising four children, my parents always looked for ways to save money. I was eight years old the summer they installed an energy monitor that gauged our home’s electricity use.

To test the unit, the salesman and my father walked through our house, turned on every light and electric appliance, and then went into the basement. Dad had warned us children to stay out of the way while they worked. But the heat of the day drove me inside for a glass of water. Walking through the kitchen, I was startled to see flames flickering inside the oven. I ran to the basement and shouted, “Dad, did you know there’s a fire in the oven?”

“Yeah, it’s fine, honey,” he responded absently. “Go back outside.”

Incredulous but not wanting to be a nuisance, I turned to go just as Dad and the salesman came back upstairs.

One look at the oven, however, told Dad that things were not, in fact, fine. As the salesman ran to his car to grab a fire extinguisher, Dad quickly ushered me outside.

Later, with the fire out and the salesman gone, we laughed as we assessed the damage: The charred remains of a package of cookies and a loaf of bread that Dad had forgotten were stored in the broiler. Grinning sheepishly, he turned to me, sighed, and said, “When you said there was a fire in the oven, I thought you meant, ‘Did you know the oven is on?’”

Too often we become upset when God does not seem to listen to us, but how often do we really listen to him? Remember: He gave us two ears but only one mouth, as a gentle reminder to listen twice as much as we speak!

—Carrie Bezusko

Father, quiet my mind, open my heart, and bless me with the ability to hear you as you guide me through life. Amen.