Kathy Zimmerman
Have you ever prepared a meal for someone and the only comment you hear is “This tastes…interesting.” What does that mean? Is the diner saying “What a fascinating confluence of flavors you have prepared to create the perfect culinary delight” or “It’s curious that you chose to put these ingredients together to create this inedible mess”?
If we only hear words, we miss so very much of what is said. We need to use all of our senses to really understand the meaning, to really listen. If we see that the dinner plate is left essentially untouched, we know the diner meant the latter.
The same is true of our relationship with God. “That if you confess with your mouth ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved” (Romans 10:9-10). If we proclaim that we believe Jesus Christ is our savior but turn our backs on our brothers and sisters in need, we have spoken only with our mouths and not with our hearts. But if we profess our love for Christ and lend a helping hand to those who need it and share with others what we have, we are saying with our hearts that Jesus is in us. That is a statement worth listening to.
PRAYER: Lord, please help me to be a good listener. Help me listen to my heart. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment