Listening

My wife often tells me that I’m not listening, and we often tell our 3yr old son to “use his listening ears”.  So maybe I’m forgetting an important life lesson I learned years ago but seemed to have forgotten with daily life happening so quickly these days.

Has it ever happened where you heard a voice, or had a strong feeling about something you were going to do? Maybe it was telling you to do something, or maybe it was telling you NOT to do something. By it, I’m referring to the Holy Spirit. God telling us something directly, as clearly as he can make it. For me, three very specific times come to mind. 

·     The first was at 11yrs old riding my motorcycle. God told me to go home at dinner time, but I decided to turn around and keep riding. One minute later I had a broken leg. I should have listened, God was trying to save me from that pain.

·         The second time was when I was 27, same thing with a motorcycle. This time I had two broken legs and a fractured hip... you’d think I would have remembered the first time, but I’m a sinner who doesn’t always listen. More pain.

·     The third time, no motorcycle, but the bad thing (for me) involved my girlfriend. I kept hearing the voice for months telling me she wasn’t right, until finally I couldn’t ignore the voice any longer and we broke up. I felt bad she was heartbroken, but it was the right thing for me to do.  I listened!

About a month after we split up, my friends invited me to their wedding at the last minute. When I checked in to the hotel, I had an instant connection with the woman behind the counter. I told her how I liked her “high waisted skirt”. She awkwardly laughed but smiled. Evidently, it’s called a pencil skirt. We kept finding each other’s eyes throughout the night and finally talked after she got off work. It seemed like minutes, but it was actually hours. We had an instant connection, love at first sight.

We married a year later, six years now, and two beautiful kids.  She’s my best friend and a terrific mom. She helps in our business, is the life of the party for everybody who meets her, the love of my life, and truly a blessing from God. That’s what happens when you listen to God, he blesses you. When you don’t, he allows Satan to affect you - reminding you to listen. He wants to talk to us, but it’s up to us to listen.

Joe emailed me several weeks ago asking if I wanted to write a message sometime. I was honored and something told me to help. I listened! That said, I’m going to try and slow down daily and remember to listen more.  Give it a try and see what blessings find you this week!

The most important thing with listening… is to hear what isn’t being said.

~ Peter F. Drucker