Published by Buzzz!! Buzz!! I am sorry but the party you are calling is not available please try again. BUZZ!! BUZZ!! Can u hear me now? It’s an all too familiar cry that we make either consciously or subconsciously like a tape cassette that’s upset over a kink in its track Nothing is more frustrating than trying to reach someone or something only to have your attempts cast into an abyss of thin air. Out of the five senses hearing, specifically the art of being heard and understood, is paramount to success in our daily human interactions. The creative synergy of two or more minds on the same wavelength is not easily broken or disturbed.
However, one such event has caused many to wonder if they were being heard at all. The communicational meltdown experienced during the Katrina saga was one of the most crippling events in this decade for agencies such as FEMA. It was a logistical nightmare. Never before has the signal of the superpower’s recovery effort been this weak when viewed using the antenna of the international community. The cries of people were shown on CNN, MSNBC, and other major networks. Those looking for a listening ear, a minuteman who could go back and relay to others their plight for the basic necessities of life. The nation collectively became “the big queasy” for that week as tensions boiled over when those would be rescued from the big easy. Where was the aid and why did it take five days for it to come? Was it that those in need were poor and predominately African American that help was sluggish on approach? Did FEMA not know considering they always show hurricane preparedness videos on state run channels?
The Senate has been conducting hearings over the Katrina response. Who would have thought the Senate would have a hearing over a natural disaster as if someone is to blame? Everyone from the government down to the people I believe had a lesson to learn from this disaster. It appeared that everyone was being heard but not understood. The government failed to hear the cries of the people long before Katrina ever made her debut. New Orleans was a city that was in an economic quagmire with a distinct gap between rich and poor. It was picky in areas it chose to revitalize and the poor were often left in the most vulnerable areas. Could not the government hear the cries for better industry, wages, and community initiatives to help a crime infested city? But perhaps they could not hear over the buzzing of cranes building the next skyscraper or bayou resort.
The people also were reminded to hear the voice of reason. They knew their beloved city was below sea level. This scenario was played in doomsday videos in schools and other organizations. But perhaps the humming of the levee pumps lulled them into a false sense of security? Maybe that voice was drowned out by the shouts during Mardi gras or past day celebrations. Maybe the people of New Orleans decided to tune out that voice because they did not want to think about such a future predicament for their city. But as we know time has a nasty habit of bringing the inevitable whether we prepared or not.
But hey are the people of New Orleans any different from us in this respect? You know when God tells you it’s not your time to get married, it’s not your time to be promoted, or wait before you buy that house. How do we react? Are you waiting for God’s text message or is it full steam ahead with your plans? Sometimes we as Christians lose our signal with God and He has to roam to find us. Perhaps one reason might be that we like to be in charge of our own destiny. But we can be thankful He does not charge us roaming fees like Sprint does. In John 10:27 KJV, Jesus declares “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. No matter how far we roam we are always in heaven’s network. We can still hear that faint beep like sonar that is bent toward the barren sea floor.
I would like to suggest to you that there is Someone trying to get our attention all the time. Jesus is always on time!! His signal of love never wanes; His signal of relief from the cares of this world always soothes the psyche. He is available 24 hours a day and nothing catches Him by surprise unlike us. Jesus is always asking us “Can u hear Me now?” He says I am coming to do a “H-Cast” (heaven cast) when I come again to take you home and every eye will see that grand processional live. But can we really hear Him amidst the ground clutter of TV’s, cell phones, movies, i-pod, and other diversions? God is asking us the question “Can u hear me now?” It’s not just a simple question with a simple answer anymore. We are now engaged in a battle for our voice (mind) of which the final reward is not limited to the auspices of earth’s domain. Well we lift up His voice in this sick and dying world today? All He needs is one voice. Only time will tell.
