Listen AND Understand

At the end of the sermon yesterday we challenged you all to start listening better...actually we challenged you to RELEARN how you listen. Today, I just wanted to remind you all that there are certain things that you can do to improve your listening skills. We went over them on Sunday, but let me go over them one more time here in case you weren't with us, or forgot to write them down.

First, you need to make sure that you are listening to people with your eyes open. Look at them when they're talking. Make sure that you see what they are saying with their bodies as well as their voices. Sometimes we hear a whole lot more when we watch what someone is doing with their hands, eyes, feet and head. So watch people as they speak to you.

The second thing we mentioned was listening to the person so that you might truly understand what they are trying to say. Far too often as we listen to people we are thinking more about what we're going to say rather than what they are actually saying. So to spend that time listening and actually taking the time to hear and understand what someone is saying is huge. I firmly believe that if we do whatever we can to actually understand what someone is saying, we can avoid so many of the relationship pitfalls that come our way.

Finally, we talked about following up on our conversations. So often we say, "Hey we ought to do such and such" or "We should tell so and so about this." And then we never do anything about because we get busy, or we just don't care that much. But the truth of the matter is that if we are really engaged in a conversation with people we care about, then we need to make sure that the things that we talk about, and the ideas that come from those conversations are followed up on. This will help all the people involved in the conversation to feel as if what they have said is important and valued.

So. Are you doing your best to keep focused in your conversations? Are you really listening and understanding what people are saying to you? Remember that when we seek to understand first, then it is that much more likely that we will be understood!

Leave a comment below or ask a question. We accept them all (as long as they're clean...hahaha)

And we'll see you Sunday!

Can You Hear Me Now?

Several years ago, there was an ad campaign with the catch-phrase, "Can you hear me now?" It is quite something how God created us to be able to hear the sounds around us. With my ears I can hear the sounds of the music coming through the speakers praising our Great God! With my ears I can hear the sounds of birds singing, squirrels squeaking and dogs barking. With my ears I can hear the sound of finely tuned engine revving its engine. With my ears I can hear the cry of a newborn baby, and wonder at the miracle of new birth. With my ears I can hear my children ask me questions and tell me what is in their hearts. With my ears I can hear the concern in my wife's voice as she tells me about a problem she's facing. With my ears I can hear the sermon from my favorite pastor encouraging me to keep going and fight the good fight.

Ears are pretty amazing things. God has created us to hear. But He's also created us to listen. And those two things are not the same. I can hear my wife speaking, and still not be listening to her. I can hear my kids trying to get my attention, but I don't always listen to them. And that's a problem.

Proverbs 10:19 tells us that "when words are many, transgression (or sin) is not lacking." This simply means that when we use too many words, there is no lack of sin. But when we stop talking and listen...really listen...then we stop a lot of our sins before they have a chance to sprout.

This Sunday we will be talking about the importance of listening. We will be talking about the importance of not speaking too much. And we will be talking about the importance of keeping a lid on our tempers. God wants us to live lives that are worthy of Him and that show great promise when it comes to holiness. And so, we see that when someone asks the question, "Can you hear me now?" what they may really be saying is, "Are you really listening to me?"

And if we are going to live the holy life that God wants us to, the answer had better be "yes!"

Please feel free to comment as we would love to hear your take on this. And we'll see you Sunday!