Listen Carefully

It was mid-morning on Friday. My day off from Staples had allowed me to get some extra sleep and accomplish most the chores around our home that needed to be done. Before I sat down to watch some TV, my wife had asked me to make a call to our cable provider.

Our home was set up with two cable receivers which allowed us to watch all of our favorite shows on either TV. The older TV on a swivel stand in my wife’s bedroom had been given to us by my younger sister, Kim.

We were thankful for it as we had gotten many years of use out of it. According to my wife, the picture was going black. In the very near future we expected it to die. We thought it might be best to have the cable receiver disconnected from it, and save ourselves some money.

After speaking to our cable provider, AT&T U-verse, on the phone, it appeared the process to disconnect the unneeded equipment , and turn it in to any United Parcel Service (UPS) along with our account number to have it taken off our account by AT&T U-verse was something I should be able to do. It would be one less thing Bobbi would have to worry about later.

As helpful as this sounded, I’d for gotten several things. Several years ago when we’d signed up with AT&T U-verse, it had been required to put all of the main equipment on top of the old TV right where I assumed was the unneeded receiver.

To go from two receivers to one (and ultimately save money), would require a technician to make a house call. To watch all our recorded shows with the use of the Digital Video Record (DVR) would require the machine to be moved next to the TV in our living room.

Before I began to unhook equipment, a small voice in my head forcefully whispered, “Robert, don’t unhook those wires. You have absolutely no idea what you’re doing. Why not wait until Bobbi gets home from work to assist you?”

Of course, I ignored my own common sense advice. By the time I had accomplished my purpose, the phone was silent; there was no picture on the TV; the DVR would not show any previously recorded shows; and I hadn’t checked, but it was safe to assume our family had no Internet service. From my cell phone, I called AT&T U-verse. In a state of panic, I spent the next hour (or so) getting everything back to the way it was prior to my desire to be helpful (as a husband).

In I Samuel 3, the boy Samuel (later to become a prophet) gets a message from God at night, which he is wise enough to pay attention to. I was also given advice from God on a Friday morning that I purposely chose to ignore as a result of my male ego.

It’s important to allow one’s conscience to speak clearly (2 Corinthians 1:12) that the right thing is being done in every situation (in your life). When you hear that small voice telling you what direction should be taken in a particular situation, do as the line of a religious song I know which says ”listen, listen, pay close attention, God has something to say.”

Trust your intuition (or gut instinct) about any situation. God has given you your conscience as an early warning system to do what is right (in His eyes). Deep inside, you know what that is. When you are unsure of that, search the Bible for the answer, or ask someone that is close with the Heavenly Father.  Be the best you that is possible all year long.