I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly!

John 10:10

At the risk of laboring a point, this new hearing thing is still taking most of my attention. It is honestly hard not to be a little overwhelmed when the difference is so dramatic.

I think the best way to describe what’s going on is that certain vibrations traveling through the air have now been elevated from the general “wah wah wah, wah wah wah” of the Charlie Brown schoolteacher and into more discrete, crisp, identifiable sounds.

From wah wah wah to Good Vibrations!

From this morning: the inviting tone of the bag of coffee crinkling as I opened it, the strangely resonant clunk of the refrigerator door closing, the curiously loud gurgling of the coffee pot, the musical notes of so many birds singing.

It’s not that I was previously unaware of these sounds (well, most of them – I’m still amazed at the clicking of these keys as I type!), more that they had become dull, muted, soft, and indistinct – like the fog on a gray English day obscuring all the color and definition of a coastal scene.

Again, and this is a critically important observation, these hearing aids are not simply upping the volume, they are separating and identifying the sounds, offering more crisp definition. If I was taking a photograph of what I hear I’d say there was less noise and more focus, less blur and more clarity.

Fulness of Life:

The lesson I am beginning to draw from this experience is now moving beyond the “Their ears are closed, and they cannot hear…” (Jeremiah 6:10) and more into how important it is to live beyond the fog and the grayness and the lack of definition, and into the clarity and color and purpose Jesus invites us to engage.

• I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly (NKJV)
• My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life (NLT)
•  I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. (NIV)
•  I came so that they could have life – yes, and have it full to overflowing. (NTE)
• I came to give life with joy and abundance (VOICE)
• I came so that they could have life—indeed, so that they could live life to the fullest (CEB)
• I have come so that they may have life, life in its fullest measure (CJB)
• But I came to give life—life that is full and good (ERV)
• real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of (MESSAGE)

It’s the principle suggested in my own well-used but favorite phrase, “Live like you mean it! (because God certainly meant something powerful and beautiful when each one of us was created!)”

I feel like I am being invited to experience and interact with the world with increased clarity and purpose and understanding. Not just my ears, but my vision and my whole heart. – DEREK