Listen Up!

I have no words these days. And for a writer, that’s not a good state to be in. If I had to dig for words, and face these words head on, I can think of two: anger and uncertainty.

www.TalkingAmongFriends.com blog by Rebecca Yauger Listen Up!
Are we taking the time to listen to each other, especially in today’s climate?

For the past few months, we’ve been living in an uncertain world. The pandemic left us all in a state of limbo and fear, with our worlds turned upside down.

Now, we have this terrible video of the death of George Floyd. And our nation seems to have erupted with anger. Yes, we should be angry and upset and disheartened that the actions of a few have now tarnished the entire police force. And there is anger over racism that should have long been eradicated in this country. There are some serious and very difficult issues to face with our nation, and that feeds into our anger and into our uncertainty.

The media is continually showing us the worst side of the protests, which turned into rioting and looting. Rioting is not protesting. Looting doesn’t belong in this equation. Violence, especially started by outside, not local, paid organizations, is criminal.

Protesting for a change of attitude, to fight for needed changes of behavior and change of heart and professionalism are warranted.

Now, I’m a Caucasian Christian woman who lives in the suburbs of a major American city. And because of that, I feel like there are no words I could say that would not be misunderstood, or that would make matters worse. I’ve already seen a blanket condemnation of caucasians, that we don’t understand. And that’s true. But that doesn’t mean I’m not compassionate, or feeling, or sick to my stomach at what’s happening in the world.

We shouldn’t condemn the entire police force with a single brush, or think that all people of color are criminals, or that all white people are privileged.

Right now, I’m angry, hurt, fearful and uncertain. As a Christian, I turn to my faith and prayer. As an American, I’m not sure what other action to take, but don’t take my temporary inaction as not caring. I want to take helpful steps, not fuel the fires of anger and hate. I will be cautious.

Finally, I’m the proud daughter of a military officer. I’m a supporter of the police (NOT the bad apples), but the police men and women who care about the citizens of their cities. Anyone who condemns the police in general, needs to go on a ride along with them on one of their shifts. I’m not sure they do ride-alongs anymore, but I was able to go on one for a college paper. And it changed my world forever. That was many years ago, so I can’t imagine what the police face today.

I guess I’m saying there needs to be respect, on all sides of the table. There needs to be forgiveness. If you can’t forgive the four former police officers in Minneapolis, then forgive the rest of the police force, no matter where you live. Don’t taint them all with the same brush. Just like you don’t like being tainted with the same false brush.

www.TalkingAmongFriends.com blog by Rebecca Yauger Listen up!
How do we become the “United” States once again?

The media needs to show more and more of the positive things that are happening. People of the United States of America, no matter what skin color, need to unite for change. Respect where we come from, what our points of view are, then find the common ground. I bet there’s more common ground than we realize.

It’s funny, right now, I’m thinking of something my dad always says. A lot of folks are interested in tracing their ancestry, where they come from. My dad doesn’t understand that. He keeps it simple and says, “I’m American. I was born here. This is where I come from.”

If you are a citizen of these great United States, you are an American. We need to find a way to be united. We need to find a way to have differing opinions, but not condemn others for having a differing opinion. We can learn from each other by listening to each other.

So, besides the words anger and uncertainty, maybe the greater word we need to remember right now is LISTEN. Let’s listen to ALL sides. Let’s learn from each other. The continuing anger won’t solve anything. We’re all heartbroken over the death of George Floyd. So, there’s common ground right there. We’re all outraged. But now, let’s come together to fight the systemic issue of racism. We can respect each other’s backgrounds and cultures, and celebrate those. But we also need to remember, we’re citizens of the same country. We need to prove that we are what our name says: United States. We need to be a united people.

The division among us doesn’t solve problems. Maybe listening to each other, with the attitude of respect and the expectation of learning from each other will help us unite for a better America.

The Silence Is Deafening

Back in my younger days, I worked in radio broadcasting. In my office, the radio station was always playing in the background. No matter what we were doing, we always had one ear tuned in. So, even with the radio playing, phones ringing and conversations in the office, you know what the loudest sound was? You guessed it: silence.

If the radio station went off the air, everything stopped.  You had to pay attention to what was wrong. That silence was deafening. I finally understood what this phrase meant.

In today’s world, there’s a lot of noise… a lot! It’s rarely quiet with television, radio, social media, responsibilities from work and home. There doesn’t seem to be much silence.

Noise can be distracting. Recently, a friend of mind was counseling her son, who did not get a job he had applied for. He has applied for several jobs, and this particular one wasn’t his top choice. But he was still disappointed. His mom gave him good advice. She asked him if this was the job he really wanted, and he confirmed that it wasn’t his top choice. Then she reminded him that this was just noise. Yes, he probably was looking for validation by being accepted for a position, even though it wasn’t his first choice. But her advice was right one. It was just noise. He needed to put it aside and keep focused on his future goal.

This makes me wonder how many times I let noise get in the way and distract me from doing what I need to do.

I believe in having quiet time in the morning, where I do a daily devotional, but I know once I get going on my day, I’m really, really good at getting distracted. I fight the noise of procrastination, of worry, and sometimes even laziness.

Last fall, I wrote a post about taking four minutes a day for quiet time. You can read it here. https://talkingamongfriends.com/2019/10/03/do-you-have-four-minutes/.  It’s something I probably need to go back to when the noises get deafening, instead of the quiet. I need to pay attention to what’s most important.

By taking the time to silence the noise, you may not find all the answers. But you might find a little peace, a little less distraction, and perhaps a little more focus. Maybe it’s time to enjoy the deafening silence.

 

Do You Have Four Minutes?

Right now seems to be a season of flux for me. It looks like some changes are coming. For one, I’m taking a break right now from working on any novels. I am still writing daily using a writing prompt, and I hope to work on this blog a little more. But I will need to make some decisions about what direction I want to go with my career soon.

As a Christian, I want to follow God’s path for my life. I want to  use the gifts He’s given me for His good, not mine. Most of the time, I feel like I just need to get out of the way and quit overthinking everything.  There are some very simple mantras that stick in my head, like “Do the Work.” Or “Take Action.” Both of those are great and exactly what I need to do. But when you’re lost on which direction to go, it’s easy to just stop. And that doesn’t feel right either.

Sometimes, though, it’s okay to stop. Take a break. Just breathe for a moment. And that’s where the title of this blog comes in: Do you have four minutes?

Recently at church, one of our teaching pastors, Ryan Leak (@ryanleak), talked about our prayer life. In this fast-paced world, we’re not always stopping to pray, and most certainly aren’t taking time out for quiet time with the Lord. We all know the passage in Psalm 46 that says “Be Still and know that I am God.” Yet most of us aren’t still. So, Ryan suggested an experiment. For four minutes, you sit still. Set a timer (because yes, it feels strange at first). But quiet yourself. You can start out praying, but God knows our hearts. He hears from us enough, but do we take time to hear from Him? So be still, for four minutes. And absorb the silence.

Now, you may not hear the booming voice of God. You may not hear anything. The answers may not come, but for four minutes, you focus on God. You quiet your heart. Maybe you find peace.

As I’m struggling in this season where I’m purposely taking a break, I’m going to try to be still for four minutes a day. Will I find the answers I need? Will my path suddenly appear before me? I don’t know. But I do know that for four minutes a day, I will revel in the quiet. I will settle my racing thoughts. I will have a peaceful moment. Maybe the answers will come, maybe they won’t. But I do know they certainly won’t come unless I stop long enough to listen. I’m setting aside four minutes a day to listen.

What about you? Do you have four minutes?