From conversations we now turn to the topic of listening. If you have ever read through the letter to the Ephesians have you may have noticed that Paul does not ask a thing of the saints in the first three chapters. He only wills them to listen while he proclaims a wondrous series of great, eternal facts.
Similarly, in the Old Testament we find the prophet Isaiah imploring, “Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness, you who seek the Lord: look to the rock from which you were hewn, and to the quarry from which you were dug.” Isaiah 51:1
Of course throughout Jesus teaching ministry we find him asking those listening to him, “you who have ears to hear, let them hear.”
I recently read of someone attending a health-related seminar. The opening 80-something-year-old speaker, had an engaging and animated manner, and the audience was clearly connecting with her. The second much younger speaker, spoke with a slight accent. The writer had trouble at first understanding this speaker, and missed a fair amount of what she said during the first few minutes. However, this listener soon realised that they were understanding more as they became accustomed to the vowel sounds, the tones, the inflection, and the cadence of the young speaker and the more they intentionally listened, the more the greater their understanding.
We may ask, was this some sort of linguistic miracle that had taken place? No. For one thing, by making a concerted effort to listen carefully, understanding emerged. It was a matter of having ears to hear.
O Lord, You speak to us in many ways, both through Your Word, the Bible, and through Your prompting in our inner being. May our spiritual ears be attuned to Your voice so that we can listen and obey. Amen.
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