Luke 9:9
“And Herod said, John have I beheaded: but who is this, of whom I hear such things? And he desired to see him.”
It says in the verse above that Herod desired to see Jesus. He heard about the miracles of Jesus and was curious about who He was. What is interesting is that Herod as the ruler, could have contacted Jesus if he had wanted. His problem was that he wanted Jesus to be the One Who contacted him. Herod made the same mistake that many people make in that he forgot that communication is a two-way street.
I recently called a friend of mine with whom I had not talked with in awhile. When he heard my voice he said to me, “Bro. Domelle, I haven’t heard from you in awhile. It sure is good to hear your voice again.” I was a bit surprised when he made that statement. My thought was that the phone calls go both ways. Every time we seem to talk is because I called him. I’m glad that we get to talk every once in awhile, but communication truly is a two-way street.
A person came to me not long after that phone conversation with my friend, and they asked me what to do with a sibling of theirs who complained that they never heard from them. This person told me that they are the one who always makes the attempt to call, and the sibling that complained rarely attempted to call them. I simply advised them to remind that person that the phone rings both ways, and if they wanted to talk more often then they need to call.
One-way communication is a poor way for a Christian to conduct themselves. Herod wanted Jesus to contact him when he should have been the one to contact Jesus. Herod’s problem was that he thought he was too big to lower himself to contact Jesus, even though he wanted to talk to him.
Friend, you are never too big to stay in contact with people. You must never get to the point that you want everyone to contact you. When you get to the point where you think everyone needs to call you, then you have too high of an estimation of yourself. Friendliness is a grace that every Christian should portray.
Moreover, when you are dealing with someone who never contacts you, let me encourage you to simply stay friendly at a distance. Contact them every once in awhile to keep the line of communication open, but don’t waste your time. There are many others with whom you communicate who are courteous enough to do their part of staying in touch. Spend your time influencing those who truly want to be around you.
Let me encourage you not to become known as a person who doesn’t contact others. Remember, one day you will become old, and how you stay in contact with others may determine how others will stay in contact with you when you get old. If you practice good communication skills by personally reaching out, then you will find that you will have more people whom you can influence.