Our dog loves to hide under the bed when she has taken something to chew that she shouldn't.
It used to be very easy to coax her out by shaking the box of treats , her response was immediate and we simply waited on the thunder of paws on the stair as she raced down to the hall. But clearly the shaking of the treat box has become tired and now we can shake 'til we drop and she will not come. Except that I have a new scheme...
Now I open the front door ,ring the doorbell , pretend someone has arrived and down she comes like a bolt.... as I tried this I felt quite smug, but as I am writing it I realised how mad we sound and that sensible dog owners who have actually trained their dogs well in the first place will be shaking their heads in disbelief. Still it works for us, until she gets used to it and doesn't respond any more.
Sometimes we too get so familiar with a story or a verse that we don't respond either. The parables are so well known we can recite them backwards but do they mean anything to us now? Yesterday in church I listened once more to the story of Pentacost and I really tried to imagine the scene, the disbelief, the discussion the realisation that something inexplicable was happening, and the excitement that it generated.
If we can only step back sometimes, hear again as if for the first time ,then our response may be quite different, and just like my dog, the rewards awaiting us will be well worth it.
