Selective hearing

I suffer from something called selective hearing.

Helen once asked me if we had any frozen corn in the freezer and my response was "it would be good to have some fish."

This reminds me of...

A man decided his wife was getting hard of hearing. So, he arranged an appointment to have her hearing checked. The doctor said he had a full schedule and could see her in two weeks. However, the doctor suggested the husband tried a simple, informal test that he could do to give the doctor some idea of the dimensions of a problem.

"Here's what you do," he said. "Stand about 40 feet away from her, and speak in a normal conversational tone and see if she hears you. If not, go to 30 feet, then 20 feet, and so on until you get a response."

That evening his wife is in the kitchen cooking dinner, and he's in the living room, and he says to himself. "I'm about 40 feet away, let's see what happens."

"Darling, what's for dinner?" No response.

So he moves to the other end of the room, about 30 feet away.

"Darling, what's for dinner?" No response.

So he moves into the dining room, about 20 feet away. "Darling, what's for dinner?" No response. On to the kitchen door, only 10 feet away. "Darling, what's for dinner?" No response.

So he walks right up behind her. "Darling, what's for dinner?

She turns around and says. "FOR THE FIFTH time, CHICKEN!!!"


A joke, but isn't that the way it is sometimes in our lives? We are deaf to what is really going on around us.

Today's passage is all about listening and hearing - following the voice of Jesus.\



In John 10: 22-30 the people are wanting to say, "Yes you caught me out I am God's son. I was sent by God's love to you."

But instead, Jesus says, "the works that I do in my Father's name, these testify about me". He is telling them to look around and find the love offered to everyone.

Jesus says "my sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me".


How well do we know our own church family?

How well do we know our community?

The church needs to be a movement -  in and out. Our gate (our church door needs to be open to reach out to the people?

Jesus the Good Shepherd looks after his flock with care, something that Peter the apostle-shepherd draws on in a place of sadness and loss. 

How can we be generous to ourselves, community and the world?

Jesus knows about the poverty around the world, the unemployment, the shocking news in America. And Jesus wants you to know more about each other, the community and the world.

When we hear...what a beautiful name it is. The name of Jesus.

I pray that our churches become a movement of Christians inviting friends to their church, so more people will know about what we do. May you be the gate to people. The gate that opens directing people to Jesus. 

Are you the good shepherd that can make a difference?




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