SAMPLE CHAPTERS : HIGH -TECH EARS
High-Tech Ears (page 134)
Sounds… we hear them wherever we go. Or do we? We hear a sound
because something or someone makes a sound. But wait, is that the way
it goes? Next time you are at the zoo, check out the elephants. These big
guys look chilled out and silent. In fact you might get bored watching
these quiet giants. But you will be surprised to know they have a secret!
God has given elephants (and many other animals) ears that hear
sounds which we cannot. Infrasound is a low-pitched sound on the range
or spectrum of sounds which some animals can hear and use to their
benefit. The elephants’ high-tech ears can hear this sound. The next time
you visit the zoo you might be able to see an elephant “doing” infrasound.
The place between its eyes will flutter or throb. Infrasound is a
low, weird throbbing in the air around you, more like a feeling than a
sound; you might call them vibes. This mysterious sound or vibration
travels through the elephants’ sinus cavity.
Elephants will choose to use infrasound when they are trying to tell
one another something. In the wild, these huge mammals hang out in
groups in the forests of Asia and the grasslands of Africa. Because the
bulls (males) and cows (females) live separately and, many times, far
away from one another, they use this infrasound to find one another so
they can mate. They also use this quiet sound to pass life-saving messages
from group to group. If a watering hole has dried up, a group of elephants
will send a message such as, “Don’t waste your energy coming here!”
Or sometimes lightning will cause their food supply to be scorched and
gone, so the same message will be sent letting their families know to go
to another food source. The infrasound waves travel through the ground
or low to the ground for several miles.
Like email, phone, or text, the elephants can stay connected. If the
wind is blowing in the wrong direction, they will not be able to pick up
the scent, so they just turn up their high-tech ears to listen for infrasound.
The Lord’s creation is so full of exciting works, but we have to
look for them to appreciate each.
What about You?
Most of the time infrasound travels through the ground and, without
fading away, takes the elephants’ messages many miles until they
reach the ears of their families. The sound is strong and understandable,
though it is silent.
Did you know you can talk aloud or silently to Jesus anytime, anyplace,
and He will hear? But just like the elephant’s secret language, you
have to have the ears of your heart ready to hear the Lord. When you
invite Jesus Christ into your heart, the Holy Spirit gives you those ears
to hear for the rest of your life. Then you need to listen with your heart
as you read, pray, and think about what you have read in your Bible
and devotional. Find today’s scripture verses in your Bible and underline
them.
My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they
follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never
die and no one can steal them out of my hand.
John 10: 27–28 NCV
Day 2: Check It Out
Asking your parents’ permission, visit the library or go online to find
other critters that use infrasound. What about the animals that use ultrasound
giving them high-tech ears into their environments. What did you
find out? Journal in the box below.
Day 3: Check Within
To listen with high-tech ears, the elephant needs to quiet itself. What
does the Bible say about listening? Read Luke 10:38–42. Jesus loved both
Martha and Mary. But what did Mary do that Jesus said was the “better
thing and it will never be taken from her”? What does it mean to “sit at
Jesus feet and listen”? Journal in box below.
Day 4: Check Around
These days, kids plug iPods or cell phones into their ears almost
twenty-four-seven. Keeping your ears unplugged now and then allows
your ears to hear what is going on around you. Plugging yourself into
some quiet time with your devotional and Bible will help you be aware of
God’s plans for you and your heart will hear God speak to it. How can
you get your buddies to unplug once and a while so they can listen to
what God wants to tell them? Journal in box below.
Day 5: Check with the Lord
Read Psalm 27:14, and then pray this prayer:
Dear Lord, thank You for giving me a new start to my day, my attitude,
my choices, and my desire to please You. Just knowing that You
want me to sit and be with You make these few minutes with You worthwhile!
Lord, help me with all I need to do today. I need You to keep
watch over my thinking and my words! Teach me how to turn off the
wrong things in my daily life, like Martha needed to learn. I want to
listen for You as You speak to my heart. Teach me to have high-tech ears
inside my heart to listen for Your voice. In Jesus’s name I pray, Amen
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