Real Hope: Learning to ListenSample

Stillness In Listening

The sand felt more like weights than fine grains of dust as I trudged my way up the dune. A head full of worry and questions joined with gravity to make my mind and body heavy, forcing me to dig deeper in my resolve to make it to the top. If I could just get to the top, then it would all be ok.

I pressed on, determination propelling me forward despite the heavy heart I carried. I looked up. A smile crept across my face as the familiar roar of the waves and smell of salt greeted me. I had made it. And with that revelation, a metaphorical weight dropped my shoulders as I watched turquoise and aqua dance within the waves.

I settled onto the seat and breathed again deeper this time, and as my body instinctually expelled the air, I felt the calamity in my mind go with it. ‘I am ready now, Lord,’ I thought and breathed in deep again.

The beach. For me, it’s the beach. This is my place of quiet, of stillness, of rest, of connection. It’s where I come to hear God, away from all that is familiar and distracting. It brings a quiet with it I have found nowhere else and allows me to truly hear. Listening is all about the will. Our willingness in seeking to hear from God is what enables us to hear.

Where do you go to listen to God? And how willing are you to hear what He has to say?

Written by NERI MORRIS

Want more? Check out the Real Hope Conversations Podcast and delve deeper into our conversation about Learning to Listen. Available wherever you listen to podcasts.