In a post a while back I said I'd been asked to do a presentation about listening at a retreat. During preparation a number of insights came to me, and I thought a few could be worth noting here. For some readers they may not be especially insightful, but they were for me.
As I reflected on the act of real listening, I understood that it involves conscious steps: hearing some message, taking it into myself, making it part of me in some way, then performing some action such as paying more attention to someone who is present or even changing something in myself; the action depends upon what the message is calling me toward. (These steps are what distinguish listening from hearing. The latter may bring some sound in, but nothing happens that affects me; there's no conscious action on my part. Some writers noted how hard listening is, one going so far as to say, tongue in cheek, that no one really listens, and if we tried it, we'd understand why!)
Amidst all these observations came the notion that much of what we listen to are words. Then the thought of Jesus as Word entered the mix. It dawned on me that one way to look at the incarnation is that Jesus is God's invitation to listen; he is the perfect Word! Next came the thought that Jesus was not only God's complete Word, but the perfect Listener because he did the will of his father totally and completely.
Since I am part of Christ's body, I share in this mysterious reality. I am to be God's word as well as one who listens to God's word wherever I am. This is quite a challenge to reflect on and try to make part of my daily living.
a ky monk
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