Bible Reading: Revelation 2:8-17
Key Verse: Verse 11 - "He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.”
Key Words: He that hath an ear, let him hear
One of the things I have learned as the pastor of a church with a school ministry is that children are poor listeners, at least according to the achievement test scores. I do believe that children get their poor listening skills from their parents. The truth is that we all need to develop better listening skills.
Do you know which organ of the body requires the most energy? The first two obvious guesses might be the heart or brain. Actually, the inner ear demands the most bodily energy. Attentive listening can be a draining experience, so God made sure the ears got all of the necessary power to carry out this important task.
President Roosevelt once became tired of the smiling superficiality that accompanied many White House receptions. On this particular evening he decided to see whether anyone was actually paying attention to what he said. As he shook hands with each guest filing through the line, he smiled really big and said, “I murdered my grandmother this morning.” No one even noticed. People just gave the usual protocol, “How lovely!” or “Keep up the good work.” One foreign diplomat was listening and added humor to the night as well. When FDR told of his scandalous deed, the diplomat tactfully commented, “I’m sure she had it coming to her.”
Jesus’ half-brother, James, initially had trouble hearing his brother’s message (John 7:5). Perhaps that’s why James later wrote, “Everyone should be swift to hear.” (James 1:19)
Well, I’d better go for now. I’ve had people talking to me… I’d better go find out what they said.
What to do:
✞ Ask God to help you be a good listener.
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