If you’re a christian, you are quite familiar with the concept of letting go of self.  We all start out in life as little babies who are completely selfish…we only are aware of our own needs (hungry,tired, uncomfortable, need attention!) and as we grow and mature we develop an awareness of others and a new and ever-changing picture of ourselves and our place in the world.  It reminds me of zooming out on a map.  You start completely zoomed in on the tiniest spot and that’s all you see.  The image is very detailed on that spot and very focused.  You see every street in that little town and can get so focused that you are only looking at one individual house!  Then you click the “zoom out” button, and suddenly find that there’s more to see than you realized.  Maybe there’s a lake nearby, that you were completely unaware of.  Maybe the town is smaller (or bigger) than you thought.  Then you click it again, and you find the same thing.  The lake is one of several and there’s a state park there, too.  You didn’t realize that the Canadian border is only 30 miles away…The picture you see gets bigger and bigger and you see that original tiny spot from a different perspective.  Nothing about that picture changed, just your view of it.  As we grow from infants into adults, we mentally keep zooming out and discovering new perspective and insight on how we fit into the big picture of life.  When we become christians, we make a choice to give up ourselves and to dedicate our lives to glorifying God and serving others.  That means putting God and His will first.  That means putting others ahead of ourselves.  That means letting go of self.  We know that, and we strive for it.  It’s easier said than done.  I love the hymn “None of Self, and All of Thee” that describes the process so well.  I think that even when we’re trying our best, we still hang on to some selfishness.  I’ve found that losing my hearing is just exactly what I needed.  I think it’s helping me to let go of myself a little bit more.  There’s a certain amount of “I’m right” that I’ve hung on to and I’m being forced to accept the fact that these days (and probably before, too!) it’s not that unusual for me to be the one that’s wrong!  I misheard something, or acted on what I thought was happening when my perception was wrong.  I anticipated that someone would view things, intend things, act the way I would in a given situation and reacted accordingly, when the reality is that they were coming from a direction I had not thought of or anticipated.  In that case, it’s MY words that don’t make sense or cause the problem!  When we hold on to a sense of “rightness”  (should we really call it self-righteousness?) doesn’t that also cause us to be very defensive when we are questioned?  How many of us react defensively and “put up walls” when someone questions our opinions about things or even (gasp) suggests that we might be wrong about something?  Letting go, and allowing for the possibility that we don’t know everything and we aren’t right about everything is actually very freeing!  You can be completely open and attentive without feeling defensive or mentally moving on beyond that moment.  Suddenly you are actually listening and have the wonderful opportunity to consider the words you are hearing.  You have the opportunity to get more information , more insight, more understanding about something!   Everything you hear won’t be correct or accurate, but it is my opinion that stopping to think about things is always a good thing.  Sometimes, you conclude that what you thought about something was right, but you now have a better understanding of why you believe what you believe.  Sometimes, you find that what you believed was wrong.  You never thought much about it before and now that you have looked at it again and considered other aspects of it, you find that your eyes have been opened and you need to change your thinking.  What a huge blessing that is!!  We have to be open to it, using God’s word as the standard by which we consider things. There are  so many scriptures that talk about how foolish it is to rely on our own thoughts and opinions and how important it is to seek wise counsel when we need it, and to listen to reproof and correction.  There are also so very many that talk about how important it is to seek wisdom and have understanding.

Proverbs 14:12:  There is a way which seems right to a man, but it’s end is the way of death.

Proverbs 12:15:  The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man is he who listens to counsel.

Proverbs 4:13: Take hold of instruction, do not let go.  Guard her, for she is your life.

Proverbs 5:12:  And you say, “How I have hated instruction!  And my heart spurned reproof!  I have not listened to the voice of my teachers, nor inclined my ear to my instructors!  I was almost in utter ruin in the midst of the assembly and congregation.”

Psalm 111:10:  The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who do His commandments; His praise endures forever.

I’m thankful that God molds us and shapes us throughout our lives and knows exactly what we need.  I’m thankful for the experience I’m having now with my hearing and the lessons I’m learning from it.  It’s all a matter of perspective.