An Intentional Listener

“Oh, that you would  be silent. And it would be  your wisdom!” Job 13:5

How good a listener are you?  Communication coaches say that we aren’t  good at listening to others during a conversation.  Check yourself during a conversation, and you may find that you aren’t really listening at all. Your mind has jumped off the rail to think of  things irrelevant to what you’re supposed to be talking about. We’re told that focused listening is  more difficult today with the presence of  our gadgets, the main one being the smartphone. With about 5.4 billion people in the world using smartphones, the temptation to half-listen, or not listen at all, is great.

To  help us become better listeners, or what are called active listeners, communication coaches  say we must listen to understand, not merely to respond. Also, we can show engagement and interest in what  the other person  is saying by looking them in the eye or by nodding  our  head appropriately. The important thing is to choose to be intentionally present.

From our focus text, we can understand Job’s  frustration  with his friends who had come to comfort him in his suffering. Job had explained his situation so far; he knew he was innocent and said so, but his friends had one thing in mind: that was to get him to admit that he  had sinned and  was paying the price in suffering. If you kept silent, it would make you seem wise, Job told them in frustration. It’s nerve-racking being in conversation with people like his friends. They could’ve used a few listening lessons.

Our God  is  the supreme engaged listener. We always have His full attention. “The eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and His ears are open to their cry” (Psalm 34:15).  Whatever  the  situation, He is keenly aware of it and will listen when we present our petition.  Our conversation with Him gets His undivided attention.  That should be an encouragement to us when we pray.

The words of a well-know spiritual say, “King Jesus is a-listening all night long.” His ears are  open to our voice  night  and day  When we  “take our burden to the Lord,”  we can do so with the assurance that He is listening and will  answer as is fitting for our need.

Always,

Judith

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“The art of conversation
lies in listening.”
Malcolm Forbes