Daily Devotionals

Two Ears, One Mouth and a Mute Button

Posted in Anger/Frustration

Scripture:  “You must understand this, my beloved: let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger; for your anger does not produce God’s righteousness.” – James 1:19-20

 

Constant conference calls and Zoom meetings have become a part of our daily lives. It’s almost impossible to get through an entire call without someone forgetting to unmute themself when it’s their turn to speak. You know the drill. There’s a bit of uncomfortable silence, a gentle comment from the moderator, and then a self-deprecating laugh from the self-muted participant followed by a jovial, “I’m back – so sorry – I didn’t realize I was on mute!” 

 

When that muted participant is me, it’s usually a good thing. 

 

I move at a fast pace and like to get to the nitty gritty pretty quickly. Admittedly, I’m not always patient when listening to someone else’s point of view. I can be an interrupter, and, when I have something to say, it’s really hard for me to wait patiently for my turn. 

 

I know. It’s very unbecoming of me. The good Lord gave me two ears and one mouth for a reason, right?  

 

But I didn’t realize the extent of my interrupting problem until recently.

 

You see, I would go to (unintentionally) interrupt someone and blather on with my commentary only to find that I had been blathering for 15 seconds to no one but myself. 90 percent of the time I was thankful no one heard me because my comment would be one I wished I could take back!  

 

I can think of no better time than right now to try to become a better listener especially before speaking (or typing). So much is happening in our world, and the amount of information that we are trying to process needs time to sink in and be filtered by our ears and our hearts – and sometimes a mute button. 

 

Prayer:  Dear Lord, please help me become a better listener. Help me process information before choosing to speak. Please allow the words that come from my mouth be life-giving and filtered through a lens of patience and love. In Jesus’ name, Amen. 

 

Submitted by Kelly Barbrey