And about the time of her death the women attending her said to her, “Do not be afraid, for you have borne a son.” But she did not answer or pay attention. (1 Samuel 4:20 ESV)
I knew every noise my first vehicle made. I had spent a fair bit of time under the hood, and I believed that I understood every knock, clunk, wine, rattle, and grind. One Saturday afternoon, I was running late to a church ground-breaking ceremony. And I heard a noise. It was coming from beneath the center of the truck, and in the back of my mind I deduced that the trouble was the U-joint. (A part of the mechanism that transfers Engine Energy into Drive Energy.) But I didn’t have time for that.
So I ignored the sound. I didn’t like it, so I chose not to really hear it. I kept driving. And sure enough, a few miles further on, the rattle became a grind which became a clunk, which became a horrible metal-dragging-on-the-road cacophony. And I was stuck by the side of the road. Luckily, I had a tin can that I was able to jury-rig into a bracket, and I arrived sort of on time.
Our ears have constant sensory overload. Sound waves are more common than mosquitoes in June. And whether we admit it or not, we ‘hear’ what we choose to hear.
The woman in this verse was told good words. But she heard things that made her afraid, instead. She knew that her father-in-law, Eli had died. She knew that the Philistines were winning the war. She knew that the Ark of the Covenant was gone.
She heard THOSE things. And she named the baby that was born as she died, “Glory has departed,” Ichabod.
She chose not to hear the hope found in a son. She chose not to hear the reminder that God was still with her, and Israel. She ignored good news and trusted her fears instead.
Our ears detect dangers, toils, worrisome things, warnings, and all that we hear are reasons to despair, to fret, and to fear.
But the Word of God tells us a different tale. We could hear God saying, “peace.” We could hear Jesus saying, “I will never leave you or forsake you.” We could hear the prophets shouting, “The Lord!”
Sensory overload… but the only thing worth listening to is God.
Fear Not, Listen to God.