When We've Got Ears but Fail to Listen

Pastor Steve got a message from his troubled friend.
It said, “Why is my life so distressing and gloomy? Why do all these problems surround me? What have I done God wrong? Tell me why these things happen to me!”
Steve replied, “Sometimes, when bad things happen to us, it is God’s process to shape us into a better person. At other times, it is due to our own sin or wrongdoing that God wants us to evaluate and correct before stepping any further. In all things, we need to have a heart full of gratitude for everything He does in our life.”
Can you guess the friend’s response?
He messaged back, “So you’re telling me I’m an ungrateful person? You dare call me a sinner? Who in this world never sins? Answer me!”
Well, from the reply, we know why those things happen to him, don’t we?
Steve’s friend is the kind who lacks self-evaluation. Instead of taking time to introspect himself, he believes that all the problems he’s facing come from outside. He blames others – either God or people or circumstances – for being responsible for the troubles in his life. He never thinks that he has to be responsible for himself: his mind, his actions, his behavior, and his decisions.
Stephen Covey was right when he said, “If we don’t take control over our own lives, others will.”
So the underlying point is how to be the man-in-charge over the wheels of our life. Though God is in control over everything in the universe, He doesn’t want us to be passive or idle in managing the life He’s granted us.
He gives us mind to think, hands to work, heart to feel, and – as in the above story – ears to listen to advices, rebukes and improving inputs.
When we’ve got ears but fail to listen, well… Don’t be surprised if we don’t find solutions to our problems!