During a commercial airline flight, the attendant passed out gum, telling passengers it would relieve the pressure in their ears during the descent. After landing, it took one passenger an hour to get the gum out of her ears. 😁 But, we all know gum is not the only means of dulling our hearing.
When he was a young boy, Samuel, in the night heard God calling his name. He didn't know God at that point. He had no idea who was calling. He thought it was the priest. After a short time, the priest, Eli, knew God was calling Samuel and instructed him to respond with the words, "Speak, Lord, for Your servant is listening." Sure enough, God spoke and said to him, "Behold, I am about to do a thing in Israel at which both ears of everyone who hears it WILL TINGLE." God's truth is powerful and He can get His message through whenever He so chooses.
God's Word predicts a day, probably the days in which we live, "when people will have no stomach for solid teaching, but will fill up on spiritual junk food—catchy opinions that TICKLE their fancy. They'll turn their backs on truth and chase mirages" (2 Timothy 4:3-4 - Paraphrase THE MESSAGE).
For the sake of a God-ordered life and inerrant guidance from the all-wise God, a wise person will actually want his or her ears to TINGLE. All others will be soothingly smug with just a tickle.
As a long time pastor, I've had people leave a preaching service saying, "Thanks, pastor, you stepped on my toes, but I needed it." Other leave and silently pass you with stifled anger etched on their faces. They merely wanted to be tickled but their ears got tingled. The aim of a preacher is to make the whole heart tingle. And this, in order that a life will change for the glory of God. That's necessary if a soul will be saved, let alone a Christian walking pleasingly before their God.
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