Maybe you're not like the rest of us. You and your husband always talk to each other and always not only listen, but also hear each other.
And maybe pigs fly.
For a lot of us, it goes something like this.
He: "The boss handed out some pink slips today. I hear there will be more…"
She: "My head's been pounding like crazy all day! I can't take much more of this."
He: "We'd better start cutting corners. You never know what's coming next…"
She: "Maybe I should see a doctor about these headaches… Mom had headaches first, before they found her brain tumor. Or maybe it's nothing…"
Does that ever happen at your house?
Most parents consider it typical that their children don't listen, especially teens. (Teens say the same thing about their parents.) Friends often disappoint us, too. We long for a listening ear and an encouraging word, but often they seem not to hear us. They're wrapped up in their own problems and can't wait to launch into telling us about them.
Okay, let's be honest. We're all that way, aren't we? We talk past each other–and call it conversation. We speak at each other, not to each other, then pride ourselves on our good communication skills.
In a nutshell, we talk past each other and call it conversation. What if we turned around and just…started listening, really listening? I ran across a couple of Bible verses that seem a fitting illustration–and a picture of what love looks like.
Love must be sincere…Rejoice with those who rejoice;
mourn with those who mourn. —Romans 12:9, 15
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Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue
but with actions and in truth. –1 John 3:18
Now, if you would please excuse me, I need to shut off this willful computer and go listen to my wonderful, longsuffering husband…
Blessings,
Lenore
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