Listening

Listening

As you enter the house of God, keep your ears open and your mouth shut! Don’t be a fool who doesn’t realize that mindless offerings to God are evil. And don’t make rash promises to God, for he is in heaven, and you are only here on earth. So let your words be few.

Ecclesiastes 5:1-2

Have you ever spent time with a person who talked incessantly and rarely came up for air? Who bounced from one thought to the next to the next to the next? Whose endless flow of words left you wishing that there was a STOP button you could push? (I realize that many three-year-olds fit into this category, but even three-year-olds can be taught to be quiet for short periods of time.)

We tend to feel anxious and agitated around such people because we feel trapped, used, or controlled. We sense that the person we’re listening to is hardly aware of us.

I wonder how God feels when I rush into his presence and rattle off my words, feelings, and requests. I wonder how he feels when I forget who he is and fail to show him appropriate reverence and respect. Oh, I know there are times when I’m overwhelmed and I want to pour out my heart to God. My earthly friends offer me patience and understanding at times like that, and I have no doubt that God’s ears are open to my cries too. But am I? Am I mostly talking and rarely listening? That kind of pattern doesn’t bode well with friends and family, and in these verses from Ecclesiastes, Solomon explains it doesn’t bode well with God, either.

It’s obvious that the psalmists felt comfortable expressing their thoughts and feelings to God. But they were also in the habit of stopping, looking, and listening. We’re wise to follow their lead—to “Be silent, and know that I am God!” (Psalm 46:10).

Father,

May we never get so busy that we don’t take time to listen to you. Amen.