Listen and Do

November 9

Ezekiel 23-24

Psalm 119:137-144

Proverbs 27:3-4

James 1:19-27

Listen and Do

“Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. Do not merely listen to the Word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” James 1:19-20, 22 NIV

Listening is hard. I must admit that I’m not very good at it. Listening is not a passive activity. Active listening requires attention and focus. I remember studying about active listening in my social work classes in college. I need to remind myself periodically of the suggestions they gave.

1. Make eye contact

2. Don’t interrupt

3. Don’t jump to conclusions before you hear them out

4. Listen to nonverbal cues such as facial expressions, posture, etc.

5. Don’t start planning what to say next

6. Ask questions to clarify

7. Paraphrase and summarize to make sure you understand what they are saying

After we have done all those things, it is still best not to jump in with our opinions and solutions. The next step should be prayer. If we are in the middle of a conversation that might be hard, but while they are talking it is helpful to ask God to give you wisdom and the right words to say to them. I’m not suggesting that you stop and bow your head, but rather that you voice a quick prayer inviting God into the conversation and allowing Him to guide your mouth. This will also help with the next instruction: to be slow to become angry. Instead of immediately reacting to what they are saying in anger, a quick prayer can calm you down long enough to choose your words carefully and not add fuel to the fire. “Human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.” That is an understatement. I don’t think I have ever reacted in anger to anything and then later felt good about it. Even if I was right, I always regret how I dealt with it and wish I could take my words back. I have never regretted slowing down and thinking about how to respond appropriately.

Verse 22 gives us more advice about listening. It tells us not to just listen to God’s Word but do what it says. It is possible to read our Bible every day and know exactly what it says and yet never apply it to our lives. Just like the Bible does us no good sitting on our nightstand or on a bookshelf, it also does us no good if we read it and then ignore what it says. God uses His Word to speak to us and tell us what we need to hear to grow spiritually and to live lives that please Him. We need to listen actively to what He is telling us and then do what it says.