Are you a talker or a listener? Do you like the sound of your own voice and use it often and for great lengths of time? Possibly, you are the quiet type, who sets and watches, taking in every little detail!
I am a talker and all who know me know this fact but as I grow and mature I have come to realize; there’s a time to talk, a time to listen, a time to reply and a time to wait. I have learned that timing is everything but that might be a different message for another day.
Today, I want to address the person in need. The one who is in need of an ear and someone who cares enough to listen. Listen, is the key word today. When you are in a position to be an ear, be just that; not a mouth, not an opinion, not a ‘Oh I know how you feel, because I’. You just stopped listening, and are about to change the pain of this someone to an account of your own. Take away here…you stopped listening.
Trust me, at that moment they don’t care about your past experience and you just made them feel like they don’t really matter. I grew up with a person who made everything about them, this person is so self absorbed that other people’s pain is a brief moment of thought and future gossip. So, when I start feeling myself starting to give an account of me in a painful conversation I immediately shut up. I am praying for and working hard everyday on being a listener, not an advice giver. When someone needs to talk, that’s all they need … that and maybe a hug!
I will leave you with this thought; the next time you open your mouth to speak words of wisdom to a heart in pain…shut it and re-open your ears. James 1:19a NCV “My dear brothers and sisters, always be willing to listen and slow to speak.”
Have a blessed day and thank you for joining me. 🥰
Sunshine On My Shoulder 