Points

I like to think I listen, always and well.  I know it isn’t completely true, no matter how aspirational the thought might be.  If there was any doubt, special members of the family frequently remind me how I missed the thought and intent of the other side of a conversation.  I wish I were unique.  Unfortunately  the irony of how we hear conversations in ways not intended by the speaker has transcended the centuries. 
 
When “Isaiah said to Hezekiah, ‘Now listen to this Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies: I have to warn you, the time is coming when everything in this palace, along with everything your ancestors accumulated before you, will be hauled off to Babylon.  God says that there will be nothing left.  Nothing.  And not only your things but your sons.  Some of your sons will be taken into exile, ending up as eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.’”  (Isaiah 39.5-7)  You would think the message was clear.  Hezekiah was in trouble, now.  Hezekiah’s family was going to pay a heavy price.  This was bad news.
 
Hezekiah didn’t hear any of these things.  I wonder how different I am on most days.  Even when I move beyond the bad news and warnings, do I hear the good news?  Do I see beauty when it is at my footstep?  Am I willing to experience the gifts of compassion that fill my day?  Will I let myself see Hope, even when it is in the obvious places?
 
Messages bombard your life and mine every day, usually overwhelming the moments.  Even beyond the obvious vehicles – music, television, and the web – life’s ordinary moments are filled with metaphors and living messages.  If life’s words overwhelm our lives, it should be from the beauty, love, and wonder that fills your day and mine. 
 
Life isn’t just about wonder and beauty, sometimes God gives us pain and opportunity to learn.  The question is simply this; are we willing to see the points?  Can we open ourselves up to truth?  Will we listen to Divinity?  Hope is at our door.