CONVEYING AND STAYING

I participated in this social experiment during a class I took once. It involved the art of listening. One person was told a few facts. They were to whisper them to the next person and then that person would repeat them to another. This was done and passed on around a circle. The last person then said out loud what they were told.

Predictably I guess what the last person heard was nothing like what the first person had been told. It was a far too graphic demonstration at how often we are truly such poor listeners.

We all seem to appreciate the importance of communication. But so often it seems the truth and what we really want to convey gets lots between the fissures in our memories and the faulty nature of our concentration. Recollections can often be more of a stew of facts than a pillar of clear details.

That is all part of being human. What is truly amazing is that somehow despite this problem on our part God manages to get his point across. When one thinks of the reality of all the barriers to communication I think it is pretty incredible the gospel actually gets preserved or conveyed accurately at all.

Yet we were given the “great commission” so it makes you wonder what the Lord knew about our abilities to convey the truth and have it stay faithful to reality in the process. He even calls some to the specific office that involves things like teaching and preaching.
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I don’t think God has any problems in saying what he needs to say to us. But whenever it goes through the messenger’s brain it always ends up suffering to some degree.

However the great news it the truth does go on. And if we really pause to appreciate the mystery of this we understand how the power of the God is far more capable of conveying what he wants said that whatever manages to stay in our mind. Whenever we forget that reality and think somehow our power and abilities are somehow the key to communicating the success, we should stop and remember we need God more than he could ever need us. It should hopefully be a time of rejoicing at the great love the God to even grant us the chance to play any part in his message at all. Sometimes pure gratitude has to start where the ego is left behind.