Attentive Listening

Our ears are fascinating. They are powerful little satellite dishes that sit on the side of our head. They tend to pick up all frequencies, especially the ones no one wants them to receive. Have you ever noticed how when someone in a room starts to whisper or if there is a hushed conversation happening, others around them tend to grow quieter? When that happens, they are tuning up their ears to hear that top secret information.

...they are tuning up their ears...

Some of my peers were recently discussing some of our policies in the workplace. In particular, they were conversing about how a change to one policy impacted another and now made it irrelevant. My boss was several feet away and inside his office, yet he heard the entire conversation and offered some follow up. It amazed me because he doesn’t usually hear much of the goings on when the staff are casually chatting. The same can be said of me. I’m so used to the nonsensical chatter that it becomes white noise that I easily dismiss. I can hear the sound of their talking, but I don’t always process the conversation. It’s in one ear and, quite swiftly, out the other. Usually, if they try to rope me into the idle chat and I’ve toned them out, I honestly tell them, “I wasn’t listening.”

...I’ve toned them out, I honestly tell them, “I wasn’t listening.”

That phrase is so key. I wasn’t listening. You would think that I was, right? Especially since I knew that were talking about something silly and I dismissed it. But this is where the difference between hearing and listening comes in. Hearing allows me to process sound. I may not know what made that noise or who spoke those words, but I heard something. When I listen, my goal is to make sense of what I hear. In other words, I take some additional time to process it. When we do development sessions for leaders at my job, we often stress the importance of listening to understand, not to respond. 

That is not too different from where I should strive to find myself in my quality time with God. More than just hearing his voice, I want to understand. So, I’m listening with intention. This is why we have to give God our undivided attention. If I’m just processing sound and not really making much sense out of what I hear, then I’ll have more moments where I may feel a bit lost or misdirected. When I spend more time listening and gaining a deep understanding of what I hear, then my stride is a little more sure because I understand the instructions. 

Our ears are important gateways. Rather than allowing every single thing to trickle in, we should start filtering. Metaphorically speaking, pop in some noise cancelling earbuds so that you can zero in on God’s voice and cancel out all the other nonsense. The more time we spend giving him our undivided attention, the more familiar we grow with his sound. That way, no matter how it comes, we understand it perfectly clear.

Stay Sunny!

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