Words from the Sage

The Gift of Listening

May 26, 2008 on 7:07 pm | In Developing a Listening Spirit | No Comments

The Gift of Listening

By

Marion Sinclair-Simpson

  

  It is only possible to please God when we have earnestly sought Him and allowed Him to speak to us through prayer, scripture, sacraments and contemplation. The Rule of Benedict teaches us to “Listen with the ear of our hearts”.  I am a Charismatic Catholic Christian and spirituality to me is very much about being open to the whisperings of the Holy Spirit and of paying attention to His still small voice while observing His work in my life and the lives of others.

 

  It is impossible to have a relationship with anyone which has any depth if we don’t spend time listening to them and their needs and desires, hopes and plans, dreams and ambitions.

 

  Listening to another person is a piece of cake in comparison to how hard it is to hear God when He speaks to us. We literally have to shut out the world and take time to be silent before our God to hear what He is actually saying to us.

The Scripture that admonishes and invites, “Be still and know that I Am God.” is our road map to beginning to hear His still small voice.

 

“There has never been one way of living an authentic spiritual life, nor one sure way to union with God. We see that the Christian spiritual tradition is like a mountain, containing within it many seams waiting to be mined. Most approaches to spirituality in history mine the same vein over and over again”

Michael Downey, Understanding Christian Spirituality, p68 Paulist Press, 1997

 

 

  Christian Spirituality can be defined in about as many ways as the human beings who have experienced it. It could be described as a relationship with God, ourselves, others and God’s creation, and I also believe that to have an authentic Christian spirituality we must be walking with the Holy Spirit, not to would be complete insanity.

 

As St. Paul tells us in Ephesians 6:10-18:

  ‘Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His power. Put on the whole armour of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armour of God, so that you may be able to withstand on that evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand therefore, and fasten the belt of truth around your waist, and put on the breastplate of righteousness. As shoes for your feet put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace. With all of these, take the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.  Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert and always persevere in supplication for all the saints.’

 

 

 This world is filled with temptations and distractions designed to draw our focus away from God. The luxuries that we have can become blocks to spending time alone with God. Our souls are longing to spend time being refreshed and infilled with the Spirit of God but our minds, hearts, human spirits and bodies get entangled in the busyness of the world we live in and the constant incessant noise about us deadens us to the realization that God is speaking and His still small voice will not be heard above the cacophany of daily life, the TV, Internet, the traffic, the phone, the worries of life. Yet He calls us to stop and listen.

 

“Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” (Psalm 46:10)

 

  At one time I had as my Spiritual Director a gentle priest who taught me by example the value of listening. He allowed me to speak and work through my problems, while he listened attentively and prayerfully. Through that experience I came to realize the value of having a person who paid absolute attention to me. Before we began Fr. David lit a large candle which was placed on a table in the room. There was a peacefulness enveloping us even before we began to pray to invite the Holy Spirit into the conversation. Talking through my problems in a caring, accepting environment helped me to find the solutions I was seeking. Because of his attentiveness I felt valued.

 

  Fr. David cared enough to listen and it made a difference in my life. Now I try to quiet my own thoughts and words to pay attention to what God is saying to me, what others are saying to me and how I can use that gift of listening to enhance the quality of my relationships. Sometimes I listen to the problems of others and pray for them and care for them and realize that I have not taken time to deal with my own problems. I have not taken time to listen to the voice within that also needs to be heard.

 

  Jesus commanded all of us to love one another as He first loved us. Learning to nurture myself as God nurtures all of His creation is necessary for I too must be healed and whole in order to be fully utilized to fulfill God’s purposes for my life. We are all as author Henri Nouwen coined the phrase, ‘wounded healers’ we seek healing in order to share our stories to help others, the more we teach and touch others with our journeys the more we ourselves are healed and blessed by our amazing and almighty Father. The Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.