Fluff
Winnie the Pooh said, “If the person you are talking to doesn’t appear to be listening, be patient. It may simply be that he has a small piece of fluff in his ear.”
I wonder if Winnie might be onto something. Have you ever had someone who won’t listen to you, no matter how hard you try to counsel them? Winnie might say they have a piece of “fluff” in the ear. Some people find it hard to listen well when they’re broken and discouraged.
Exodus 6:9 says Moses spoke to the people of Israel, but they didn’t listen because their spirits were broken and their lives were hard. They were dealing with discouragement. The Hebrew word for discouragement literally means “short of breath.” The people of Israel were discouraged because of their enslavement in Egypt. They were “short of breath.” Israel’s reluctance to listen to Moses’ instruction was because of their discouragement. For 700 years the Israelites had been enslaved. God told Moses to free them from slavery and to bring them to the promised land. Moses was calling for understanding and compassion, but they couldn’t hear.
What should we do when others won’t listen? Winnie the Pooh would say, “Be patient.” God says, “Love is patient, love is kind” – I Corinthians 13:4. God is not finished with that person. God is working through their sorrow, our love and our prayers. Perhaps in God’s time, He’ll open their ears to hear. Just be patient!
Prayer: Lord teach us how to be patient!
Exodus 6:9 – “They did not listen to him because of their discouragement and harsh labor.”
By the Rev. Tommy Herndon