Slow To Speak, Quick To Listen - Cultivating a Still Heart in a Noisy World

“Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak.” (James 1:19, NIV)

Have you ever heard someone say, “So-and-so just loves to hear themselves talk…”? As much as we pray no one ever says that about us, the truth is that we all have something inside of us that prefers talking, sharing, and expressing over listening. Sharing and expressing ourselves is not bad (it’s a beautiful thing!), but it can quench what the Holy Spirit wants to speak to us—shaping how we show up in the world around us. Maybe we feel like we’ll only be heard if we are the loudest voice. Maybe we fear that unless we insert ourselves, no one will ever truly know us. Or maybe if we’re honest, we speak more than listen because deep down we think we know best. Gulp.

Whatever our motivation is, I believe we can all unite under the truth that while speaking satisfies us for a moment, listening can form us for a lifetime.

When I think of people in my life, I have a short list of people that come to mind for the way they listen. They’re generally people who have a peace about them and bring a non-anxious presence into the room. They’re also people that I know deeply abide with Jesus.

See, when we listen in our time with Christ, it will evidently spill out into our horizontal relationships. For me, it’s in the quiet space that I encounter truth that doesn’t just form me, it sets me free.

As James, the brother of Jesus, says, “Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak.” (James 1:19).

Quiet, unwavering faith means coming to the one who sees you, knows you, and has good plans for you, and finding rest as we listen to the “still small voice” (1 Kings 19:11-13). Remember—there is a time for speaking, and there is a time for listening. When we tune our ear to Him, we magnify who Christ is—the best listener of all.

Challenge:

Spend some time in listening prayer today. Read a passage of Scripture (you choose!) and spend more time than you normally would reading and praying. I encourage you to read it three times and pause between each one to pray and create space for God’s still, small voice.