Whose got their ear?

Do you know??

Whose got the attention of your students?

Whose serving to shape their imagination,

views on the world,

priorities in life,

understanding of God, self, and others?

Who?

Do you know?

I would contend that knowing this (or not) can radically impact our ability to effectively communicate with students.

This one factor will give us insight into what they’re thinking — and why.

It can speak to the priorities they have and the ways in which they interact with others.

It can help us to understand the levels of self-confidence and self-worth we see within our students.

It can point us towards the origin of perspectives our students have on God, the world, others, and self.

And more importantly — as we talk with our students about these voices and how they’re shaping them in these important areas — it will make students more aware of these things as well.

I think too often our students (and most of us, really) don’t realize how the voices we listen to and the things we take in — through all of our many senses — serve to shape us.

And if we’re not careful to intentionally choose these shaping voices — well, there’s just no telling what we’ll get or how we’ll be shaped — and who we’ll become as a result.

So I ask the question once again: Whose got their ear?

Do you know?