Where Do I Stare?

SOMETHING  TO THINK ABOUT Preachers have games, too. Years ago there was a guy who regularly attended Covngton Bible Church who would go to sleep in the pew every Sunday morning.  Generally, unless he was snoring too loudly, neither I or anyone else payed attention.  "It's just Charlie.  He sleeps every Sunday morning."  If he snored a nearby pew-sitter would give him an elbow.  Sometimes, however, when he had settled in for a long sermon's nap, I would play my game.   Something my college speech teacher taught me is when you really want to make eye-contact, focus on a spot on one person--the spot right between their eyes.  I figure Mr. Preston was OK with the similarities that has to instructions to an assassin.  It made his point memorable.  It is a technique that works.  Move from one person to the next.  The congregation realizes I'm not preaching to a crowd, but to Fred, Mary, Pete, Sally, andCharlie,   but Charlie isn't listening.  He's sleeping.  Here's the game part:  I'd focus on that spot on Charlies forehead--or as close as I could get, sometimes the top of his head or the underside of his chin.  Only instead of staring for a moment and then going to the next target, I'd just keep staring at Charlie, while going right on with my preaching.  After a few seconds, everybody in the congregation, who wasn't pulling a Charlie, knew I was staring at him, and--it never failed--someone next to him would elbow him, or somebody behind him would grab his shoulder, or, even, a person in the pew in front of him would turn and give him that loud, staccato whisper, "Charlie!"   Charlie would slowly come to life and see me on the other side of the gun-site.  As blood and consciousness returned to his brain, I figure his first question was, "How long has he been staring at me?"  I have reformed.  It has been decades since I played that game.   The "game" came to mind, though, as the result of a recent conversation I had with another pastor.  Both of us post our messages online.  You can go to a website, click and listen or watch.  It shouldn't be a surprise--people are busy, etc.--but almost no one does.  We know because the sites keep track of the number of "listens" or "watches."   Which begs the "tree falling in the woods question:  "If a preacher preaches and nobody listens, has he really done anything worthwhile.  Maybe.  Maybe not.  For Isaiah andEzekiel the answer was, "Yes!"   I'd like to think that even though Charlie sleeps and cyber-Charlie doesn't click, that I'm doing what I ought to do--being faithful.  Get back with me after the Judgment Seat of Christ.   In the mean time could somebody tell where on my computer monitor to stare?  :) It's STTA.     PS:  If you didn't get the joke in the cartoon, look at Acts 20:7-12.