EARS TO HEAR!

Prayer is a reflection of one's dependence on God. (Rad Andrews)

Ask self, am I prepared to listen as I kneel or bow my head before his throne of grace or am I prompt to petition? When sharing with friends, am I the one doing all the "sharing?" Be "quick to listen" and "slow to speak"  as it says in James 1:19. Listening ears are ears that truly hear from God and others.

T.H.O.T. notes (cropped) from a recent (5/19/24) Pace Mckee Harvest sermon took listening to a whole new level.Do you think the Lord is trying to get my attention?

Expositional listening leads to action NOW….not tomorrow!

 

Listen carefully-- Luke 8:16-21

1)          Pews are for taking in but truth is for giving out! Listen evangelistically. Empty the pews for the glory of God & good of the church

2)          In pew…..Listen for introspection (secrets of your heart will come into light, you can’t hide from God) and repentance V.17 God’s character will not bend.

3)          Caution (“Heed”) and diligence in listening.. Don’t be ever hearing & not understanding. Listening carefully cannot leave you unchanged. Do you just want your ears tickled! Take heed. v.18 Take care how you listen! Listening is NOT passivity but activity. A heedful hearer. Listen as a church. Be in the pews gathered…..not virtual It’s not an individual activity---church, baptized believers listening to sermons together in pews keep us accountable. Plural (us)---preaching for y’all! Kids too. Consider how to spur one another to good deeds. Pray before, after and during your hearing.

4)          Obedience is a part of expositional listening ---relationship with Him. V.21 Hear it and do it. Apply it! 

Pace would probably ask, "Do I hear an Amen?"

Do you hear an AMEN in your heart? You might if you have ears to hear!

PRACTICING THY PRESENCE TO PRACTICE THE PAUSE!

A "pause" that refreshes my soul and pleases the Lord.

His pace becomes my pace.

Put

All

Under

Savior's

Ebullience

If actions don't please God, keep pausing until they delight Him! 

Practice Thy Presence to Practice the Pause.....or Practice the Pause to Practice Thy Presence!

EARS TO HEAR!

Ever had a friend who speaks in italics. Voice inflections control the snippets of thoughts that are important to her. Think "PITHY" in all caps! YOU THINK!.... is what she would say! 

UH, HELLO! REALLY?! That is so-o-o you! IMAGINE THAT! Oops that sounds like me! Pull-eese, I feel like I'm getting surrounded by hyperbole.....then I realize I'm the one doing the talking.

There in lies the problem. Too much talking---NOT enough listening! For me, it's also too much interrupting....way too often! 

Fearfully, it's as if I don't blurt it out right then, I'll forget it. Maybe God wants me to forget it as a way of learning to be patient, to be considerate and to be silent.

Give ear to what God says. Put down your iPhone and truly listen to Him and others. 

Have ears to hear and then respond with words from the heart. 

Addendum--Snippets from Lester Holt's 5/20 Commencement Address at Villanova weere shown on tonight. (NBC's Nightly News) Holt's words were validating to me as he too emphasized,"sometime a little less talking might serve us better...searching for the truth, asking smart questions....listening is short-tripped....listening is more than hearing words;...it's the meaning, the perspective, and the experience of others. Learn to listen with your mouth closed...All that said, we do need your voice. We need your voice to speak for knowledge....we need your voice to speak for justice and truth...civility...and know that not everything requires an instant immediate response. Take a chance; Learn to pause; be silent...... 

LEARNINGS FROM LITERATURE.....KIDDIE LIT, THAT IS

Reading aloud is important. I'm an advocate of that principle.

A child's receptive vocabulary is present much sooner than their expressive vocabulary and reading aloud is the way to increasing the breadth of that learning. Even as an adult I like to be a recipient of someone reading aloud---thus my Libby app  (audio from the public library) stays full!

Being a DiCamillo fan, (Because of Winn Dixie)  I picked this one up last week as I perused the kiddie lit shelves. The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane.

Learnings from a china bunny---aka recollections from a rabbit on a day after day, season after season, year after year of a miraculous "love" journey. 

• Beauty makes no difference. It all started with a story of a princess who loved no one and cared nothing for love, even though there were many who loved her. (p. 29) Self-centered, maybe?
• Is wanting to be with someone love? (p. 88)
• "We are going nowhere. That my friend is the irony of constant movement, Bull, the hobo. (p.95)
• He wanted to be with them. The rabbit wondered if that was love.
• And so he listened. And in his listening his heart opened wide and then wider still. (p.103) Reminds me of James 1:19, (emphasis, mine.)
• Love can include waiting. Loving can be painful. 
• Hugging feels good. (p.141)

Even a heart of the most breakable kind can learn to love, to lose and to love again is the learning listed on the book flap of the book. 

A learning to take to heart from a kid's book.

TUESDAY'S TO DOn't LIST

Consider the consequences of the negative "TO-Don'ts" on your list if they become your "DOs."

Switch your thinking. Realize that ultimately you control very few of the circumstances/happenings which life throws your way and you have no control over the responses of others. 

Re-consider those negatives......1) excessive planning, 2) fretting & complaining 3) comparing         4) excessive talking, self-promoting.

.......with a positive focus accepting that the "best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry." (R. Burns, to A Mouse")

To end on a more positive note...here are some "DOs" to counteract those DOnt's."

1. Allow the Lord to direct your steps. (Proverbs 3:6) 
2. Give thanks in everything. (1 Thessalonians 5:18) 
3. Accept self as God created you. (Psalm 139:14) 
4. Be quick to listen, listen, listen. (James 1:19)
5. In humility consider others more important than yourself. (Philippians 2:3)

DO remember that you are not in control! The most positive result is remembering Who is ultimately in control of all of life.

W.A.I.T.

Prayer is two way! 

We cry-out, petition, plead, etc. God listens.

God speaks....but do we listen? Have we forgotten it is a conversation? Have we forgotten how to "take turns" in our prayer life.

For many prayer is "one-way". We talk and then we talk some more. (James 1:19)

We shoot those arrows in the air and then go about our way, not reading His word or staying still long enough to hear His answer. (Psalm 46:10)

In this morning's prayer time, Carolyn W. shared a great acronym, W.A.I.T. to keep us mindful of the wisdom of controlling our words. 

  W--Why

  A---am

I----I

         T---Talking

Practice listening more, with both God and others, might be a good resolution for most folks. Wait your turn to talk....but remember to listen as you wait.

Wise Words

9/27/10 Today meditate on the words of wisdom given during this past weekend’s wedding ceremony, which the pastor rightly dubbed a “service of worship.” His admonition to the young couple came from James 1:19----wise words for all of us.

My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry,

Ask yourself as I have, “Am I quick to listen?”

“Am I slow to speak or am I just biding my time ‘til I can jump in with what I want to say?”