From The Storyteller
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Hello All: Making an observation about something I have difficulty explaining. Enjoy, Doug
Nudges “If I knew where the good songs came from, I'd go there more often” is a quote from the songwriter Leonard Cohen that points each of us to our special spot, and reminds us we don’t control the combination that unlocks the door. More than once I’ve heard something like, “Boy, am I glad you called. It was just what I needed”, and the only reason I could give for my call was, “It seemed like a good idea at the time”. These “good ideas” reach far beyond phone calls, so I finally began calling these unexplained “good ideas” - nudges. A nudge for church folks easily becomes a divine nudge, however, that explanation fails for non-church folks, who also have these “good ideas”. What I can say about nudges is pretty vague, and this leads me to consider other things I’m unable to explain, like why some people are left-handed. It’s certainly not something that folks choose. Naturally, this caused me to think of a young boy I know, who without a single lesson, played the piano brilliantly, and one of my sons who can remember a long sequence of numbers after one look. These are simply two more things I have no explanation for, and this is the world I live in. Which of course brings me back to trying to explain where “nudges” come from. The best I can do here is offer a theologically trained professional response, “Who cares where it comes from; just say thank you.” When nudges turn out to be a great idea - smile and accept it. When those times happen, and “it seemed like a good idea” definitely wasn’t, consider it more like a pocket call or wrong number. Note: Learning the differences in ringtones is helpful. Moral: Nudges happen - accept them and pay attention. |