The iron was sitting on the ironing board where my mom had just finished the laundry. She could tell by the way I was looking at the iron and the steam coming from it that I was intrigued (I was about 4 years old). She warned me, several times, not to touch the iron as it was very hot, and it would burn me. I heard every word she said but that shiny metal with the puffs of steam coming out looked really interesting. So, when my mom wasn’t looking, I reached out my hand and touched the iron. And guess what happened? Yes! I burned my fingers and I still have the scars as a reminder!
Why did I do that? Did I not trust my mom? She had never lied to me before! Did I think I knew better than she did? Maybe! Or maybe I was just a foolish four-year old who was attracted to something that caught my eye and my imagination and without too much thought, even though I had heard the warning, I did what I wanted to do. Probably!
Jesus doesn’t just want us to hear him but also to do what he says! He calls those people wise. Wise people understand that the instructions from Jesus are good, wise, loving and have the big picture in mind. They are given with all the insight of heaven, even if we don’t understand them all. Those who choose to listen but not follow through, Jesus calls foolish. The foolish builder is blinded by the vision of beachfront property without considering the dangers that surround him nor does he have a long-term vision. In the end, he also doesn’t have a long-term house!
So, there are a couple of questions that keep resounding in my heart and mind. The first question is: who are we listening to? Are we listening well to Jesus? Are we listening to people Jesus has surrounded us with? How are we listening? Do we try and listen alone, or do we ask for others to listen with us? And after that? What do we do?
As the EEA we want to not only listen well to Jesus, but together, we want to put what we hear into practice, and we’d like to do it together. Our team is here for you so we can listen well together. We want to listen to the Word of God, listen to the society around us with a Christian worldview, and then, like the men of Issachar, know what to do with what we are hearing. In other words, put it into practice! We want to see our churches built stronger and more united and we want to help National Alliances be equipped and connected. We want to build our lives on the solid rock of Jesus Christ and we want to see our churches and NEA do the same thing. So even if the instructions are simple or complex, let us be like the wise builder who knew where he ought to build, listened well and followed through well.
And one last note on listening. As Christians we believe that we have been given the Truth and we need to listen to the Truth. Jesus is the Truth in person. We believe that Truth is liberating, for us as churches and NEAs and also for the world. This will be our topic for the next 6-months: Liberating Truth!
Wishing you many blessings,
Connie Main Duarte & Jan Wessels
