Called to Learn

I love learning new things. I had to learn vocabulary word in an English class. My favorite part of that assignment was the study of origins of the words. I also like factoids-those little bits of information that can be stashed for trivia games.

The human brain was designed for life long learning. From a spiritual angle, we were called to life long learning. As Christians, we are the disciples or students of Christ. We have come to him to learn. He teaches us how to live in order to please the Father.

Solomon instructed his son to, "Apply your heart to instruction, and your ears to words of knowledge" (Prov. 23:22). His words are a command. Learning about our Lord and Savior isn't a mere suggestion, but a marching order.

The call is to open our hearts to instruction. The heart can refer to the inner person. The term instruction can also be translated discipline. Solomon is calling his son to open his heart to correction.

Most of us don't like correction. It tends to be embarrassing and unpleasant. But our hearts are bent away from God and in need of correcting. The shaping of our hearts happens as a result of instruction and discipline. We must be trained how to live in God pleasing ways.

How are we trained? By hearing and applying God's Word to our lives. If we will listen and apply the truths we learn, we will experience growth. It is hard work, but well worth the effort.

Listen to Your Elders

I like to listen to older people talk. It can be rather interesting. They have so many life experiences to share.

I remember overhearing two 90+ year old gentlemen telling each other about the first time they saw a car and a plane. I was twelve at the time, and their conversation blew my mind. I couldn't imagine a time without planes or cars.

By listening to my elders, I have learned at how easy my life has been. I know several men and women who worked throughout their childhood. And I don't mean chores.

It makes me grateful for the life I have. How different would I be if I had to work in the field as a child? What would this would look like without cars?

I encourage you to find some folks who are older than you, and get to know them. They can help you see the world in a different way.

I'm Sorry, I Wasn't Listening

Have you ever wondered how effective of a listener you are? Probably not, right? We all think that we are effective listeners. We tend to think our struggles are more on the hearing end of the spectrum than the listening end. If our miscommunications are hearing based, why don't we get our ears checked?

Maybe we didn't "hear" what someone said to us because we weren't present in the moment. Often it is our attention that is really at issue. Combine hearing loss with attention challenges and you get recipe for poor listening. I know in this great age of multitasking, everybody can do two (or more) things at once.

At least we think we can. Studies suggest that people experience a slow down in their cognitive processes the more tasks they do at the same time. That means when we attempt to do two things at once, we aren't thinking at our highest potential.

What does that have to do with listening? Often, we find ourselves in situations where our attention is spread out. We might be watching t.v. while conversing with a close friend, and find that we have missed part of what they are saying or an important plot development.

Poor listening skills may not seem unimportant. They may seem like an academic problem, but in reality they are much more serious. Inability (or unwillingness) to listen creates tension in our relationships. It creates a disorganized environment where things are easily forgotten. Poor listen skills affect our spiritual life as well. It is silly to think we can be ineffective listeners with other people, but great listeners when it comes to God.

More often than not, the deaf ear is turned to God before we turn on our fellow man. We should find our inattentive listening habits disturbing. The people in our lives may be there to share a message from God. If we don't listen to them, we will miss it.

Listen to Advise

"The way of the fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advise" (Prov. 12:15, ESV).

Sometimes we make our lives more difficult because we fail to listen.  There are probably times where we all think we know the best course of action, but we have not really considered everything carefully.  Sometimes it's pure stubbornness on our part.

Solomon warns us, "the way of a fool is right in his own eyes."  When we begin to think that we can do no wrong, it tends to stop up our ears. When we stop hearing advise, we become fools.

The wise man, "listens to advise."  We need to be those who listen to advise.  The key to wisdom is humility.  Humility paves the way to seeking advise and listening to it.

Receiving Instruction

"Cease to hear instruction, my son, and you will stray from the words of knowledge" (Prov. 19:27, ESV).

Most people would do well to take a course on listening. Although, the difficulty with such a class is that those taking it would, most likely, lack the skills and ability to listen to there instructor. I am convinced that most of us need to learn how to listen. When I say listen, I do not mean hear. I mean the ability to actually (and accurately) understand what the other person is trying to say. Sometimes, what we hear and what we think we hear are two different things. It's easy to tune someone out, because we don't want to hear what they are saying.

However, Solomon warns us not to tune out. He states, "Cease to hear instruction, my son, and you will stray from the words of knowledge." Ceasing to hear instruction means that one is not heeding that instruction. The words are perceived by the ear, but not by the will. Unwillingness to learn is a moral problem not intellectual. What is being warned against hear is the rejection of wisdom.

To stray from the words of knowledge is to stray from the truth. It is to stray from life. The path of folly is one that ends in destruction. Foolishness kills those who indulge in it. Thus, the wise are those who forsake foolishness. The wise surround themselves with wise counselors and heed instruction. They look to those who have seen more, who know more. They accept responsibility for their mistakes, and receive rebuke where necessary. Those who walk in the words of knowledge hear instruction. How well do you receive instruction?