Listening Beats Hearing

Hearing is one of our five senses. It’s a blessing in its own right, but if we train it further into listening, we have an even greater blessing.

I enjoy interview shows. Some great listeners and interview hosts, in my opinion, are Dr. Phil, Henry Louis Gates, Jr., and Sheila Walsh. I mention them because of how they focus on the speaker, listen carefully, and ask follow-up or clarifying questions.  

There are many others, but I want to focus on the value of listening, not the lives of the examples I’ve shared.

As I reviewed my verses this week, I kept returning to Proverbs 18:13, NLT: Spouting off before listening to the facts is both shameful and foolish.

Perhaps you also noticed that verse, plus two supporting verses below it: (1) Intelligent people are always ready to learn. Their ears are open for knowledge. Proverbs 18:15; and (2) The first to speak in court sounds right---until the cross-examination begins. Proverbs 18:17.

Notice three basic principles: (1) Get the facts before you speak, (2) Don’t cross off new ideas, and (3) Remember you want to hear both sides of an issue before making a response.  

In my younger years, someone greatly challenged me. Although I don’t remember the details of our conversation, I do remember where we were standing when they said, “It must be nice to be right all the time.”

I knew I had been corrected. I had rushed in with a reply before I listened or asked any clarifying questions.

Social media makes quick communication possible. But sometimes it seems simply an easy platform for uninformed opinions. I’ll admit that trying to get more information, even by texting can become tedious.

It’s a pleasure to talk with friends and family face to face, or at least by phone. It allows for give and take, questions, and clarifications.  

Listening beats hearing. Do yourself a favor and step it up a notch. You might be surprised at how listening improves your relationships.

*NLT is the New Living Translation/Life Application Study Bible copyright 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. All Rights Reserved. (Available wherever books are sold, or check christianbooks.com)

Photo from Pixabay: Word Image/Transformation by johnhain.   

An Unexpected Word Search

I’m always interested in words. Perhaps it comes with being a writer, but Mom was into words, too. She loved playing Scrabble and excelled at Crossword. I enjoy Word Search.

While writing I often refer to a dictionary or a thesaurus, but I didn’t expect to do that on my quest for a proverb today. I was enjoying an overview of chapter seventeen when one word called a halt to my thoughts.

The word was detestable. Not the word itself, but the way it described a couple of things detestable to God. This show-stopper was Proverbs 17:15, NLT: Acquitting the guilty and condemning the innocent - - - both are detestable to the LORD.

Anybody who joined me on this month’s quest for a personal daily proverb might remember that Proverbs 6:16 says, “There are six things the LORD hates - - - no, seven things he detests.”  All seven are listed, yet it didn’t stop me in my tracks like today’s simple two-liner.

I reviewed Proverbs 6:16 and decided the word hate softened the blow a little. I wasn’t too far off. I took time for a detestable word search and something called vocabulary.com turned up below another search claiming that the words hate and detestable are interchangeable. Hate is more common, but detest was considered an expression of such powerful dislike that no other word would do.

Some people read through the Bible each year in a different translation. Mom used to do that. I prefer to use a translation in studies for a few years. I’m currently using a *New Living Translation (NLT).

Perhaps your Bible translation says, "abomination, abhorrent, repulsive, or hateful." The idea is the same as detestable. Not one of these words indicates something in which God delights. Clearly, there are some things that God neither desires nor takes any pleasure in. 

I became interested in finding other things that are detestable to God, or that God detests. As I quickly reviewed the previous chapters of Proverbs, I noticed that some of the detestable things listed in Proverbs 6:16-19 are repeated individually in two-line Proverbs in the chapters that follow.

Life improvement comes with reading the Bible to learn. It’s not as rewarding when you just read a chapter so you can mark it off your list.

Remember Jesus’ instructions:  Love God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength (Mark 12:30). Happy reading!

*NLT is the New Living Translation/Life Application Study Bible copyright 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. All Rights Reserved. (Available wherever books are sold, or check christianbooks.com)

Photo from Pixabay: Bible, Book, Literature, by kevron2001. 

An Unexpected Challenge

I took the Proverbial challenge last week. But finding one verse that speaks to me more than all the others in the chapter for the day is not a snap.

I keep a list of my chosen verses, then for good measure, I put a small checkmark beside them. I’m on a quest, but this will not be the last time I read Proverbs. Future readings might draw my attention to something new, or I may be reminded to work on what I know now.

Once you get through the first few chapters, the verses start to pop. Whether scriptural or cultural, proverbs are short sayings or moral truths that encourage us to make wise choices.

If you want to have some fun with this, Google “cultural proverbs” and you’ll see examples from around the world. God’s word is for all cultures, but I’m sure it presents a challenge for translators.

One verse I marked this week was *Proverbs 9:12, (NLT):

If you become wise, you will be the one to benefit.

If you scorn wisdom, you will be the one to suffer.

My first thought was that this was another way of self-care - - - be wise and make good choices. But then I thought of an earlier section of scripture that I had labeled “Wisdom is Rewarding.”

According to Proverbs 3:13-18 (NLT), the person who finds wisdom and gains understanding is joyful. It also says those who hold wisdom tightly are happy. Did you notice joy and happiness are not automatic? We are to find and hold on to wisdom and understanding.

Solomon has convinced me they are worth the effort. Read these five verses in your Bible, computer, phone, or tablet, and ponder them for yourself. Proverbs 3:13-18 lists nine (9) positive results provided by wisdom.

If you’ve found Proverbs to be an unexpected challenge, don’t give up. Personal conclusions are always the most meaningful.

If you're new to this, just read last week’s blog. It’s never too late to do something good for yourself.

*All scripture quotations are NLT, taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by Permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Photo "Proverb, Poetry, Sign," by Peggy Marco on Pixabay.

The Proverbial Challenge

I’ve thrown out a one-month challenge and had many takers. I started by texting a few family members and friends, and then I challenged my email list. Now I’m sending it to an even larger group.

 Here’s My Challenge

Each day in February, join me in reading 1 chapter of Proverbs

After reading, choose 1 verse for the day

Ponder how it applies to you

Yes, February has already begun. No problem. Just read the chapter in Proverbs that matches the calendar date and cycle on through.

This challenge has been good for me. I have read The Book of Proverbs many times, but that was the problem. I simply read it, never taking time to ponder one verse for me, for the day. I can’t believe how I now look forward to my daily quest.

Knowledge is good, but not good enough. Knowledge is an accumulation of facts . . . Wisdom is applied knowledge. Effective living moves beyond knowledge to action.

We each acquire knowledge in a variety of ways. But nothing is really important to us until we decide to apply (or live by) what we have learned.

I’ll share an example of a verse I pondered this week: Proverbs 2:2 (NLT, New Living Translation):

Tune your ears to wisdom,

and concentrate on understanding.

As I pondered tune your ears to wisdom, I thought of how my piano tuner tunes all tones to Middle C. It occurred to me that God’s Word is the Middle C for the tuning of my life. I must listen closely to it.

When I pondered concentrate on understanding, I thought sometimes it takes me a while to “get it”. . . whatever “it” challenges me at the moment. But once I do “get it,” it feels good to move forward.

So, now The Proverbial Challenge is yours. Three things await you: (1) Growth in knowledge, (2) Wisdom through understanding, and (3) Personal improvement as only you can apply it. Enjoy!    

Challenges, Photo on Pixabay by Mohamed Hassan