Listen

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Let everyone be quick to listen and slow to speak. James 1:9 (NRSV)

The Apostle James gives us wise advice. We need to learn to listen to those in our lives who have greater knowledge about certain issues with which we deal in life.

As a young adult, I heard the adage, “God gave us two ears and one mouth. We are to use them accordingly.” When I felt God had led me to make the decision that I needed to learn to be a good listener, I realized I had to truly listen and not talk as much.

I sometimes hear stories that I believe should not be shared. I have to listen but I also know that I should not talk about these circumstances.

Because of the lessons I learned when I applied this scripture to my life when I held a sensitive position in our former church, I became privy to a lot of personal issues different people had in their lives. All I could do was listen and pray for them and the needs they had.

I sometimes hear stories that I believe, due to their sensitive nature, should not be shared. I have to listen but I also know that I should not talk about these circumstances. I sometimes fail in this area of listening and have to tell God I am sorry for my behavior.

I have read where our prayer time should be a conversation between us and the LORD. In our daily conversations, we talk and we listen. When we spend time with Him, shouldn’t we listen to what God wants us to hear?