In the midst of today’s uncertainty, how does one know which suggestions to act on? Is there an absolute and definitive litmus test? Are the criteria we should use to evaluate the future so clear that they are obvious to everyone? What is the answer to the conflicting voices we hear in our lives?
There is a harsh reality that we at least I, try to ignore. Today’s uncertainty is, at the core, the same as yesterday and the day before that. We have always lived in uncertainty worlds. Facts are rarely complete, even when they are we cannot be sure that this is the case. Information is often filled with conjecture, which in and of itself does not make it any more or less useful. Understanding is problematic, often requiring a perspective that one does not have.
In this reality, how do we evaluate the suggestions that flood our lives? Do we ignore anything that is not from within? Is the extreme opposite, accepting anything from one that appears wise, any better? How do we find that appropriate balance?
In the uncertainty that we find ourselves in, I gently suggest the following approach to listening to others.
First, examine “who” you are listening to. Be candid, brutally honest. If there is someone who is not on your list that you want, be intentional in adding him/her. This includes God. If you want to listen to Divinity, be intentional in spending time so that you are in a position to hear God’s voice.
Second, open yourself up to “hearing”. Suggestions do not always fit preexisting paradigms. Hearing is an action not a result.
Third, be willing to act on suggestions, even if they are not completely clear. Possibilities began when Cornelius acted on the instruction that “I want you to send to Joppa to get Simon, the one they call Peter. He's staying with Simon the Tanner down by the sea.” (Acts 10.32)
It is easy to be alone. My suggestion is to avoid being alone, to always be in community. We can be in dialogue.
