39 - Learning To Listen

Steps for being a better listener to conversations.

• Listen for the content, meaning, and feeling of the other person's words. 
• Stop interrupting.
• After each conversation, ask yourself, “What did I learn about them?”; “What did I learn about me?”; “What new piece of information did I receive?”
• Listen to understand, help, see, and support, not comment, disagree, and find fault.
• Allow moments of silence when the person finishes a thought to allow for further comment from the other person. Don’t jump in.
• Listen to what the other person is not saying.
• Refrain from letting your past experiences or desire to “fix” the problem or concern get in the way of hearing the entire message.

Steps for being a better listener to sermons.

• Come to church rested mentally and physically. Go to bed and get some sleep. 
• Expect God to speak to you. This requires a prepared heart. This requires a humble heart. This requires you to be willing to yield to the authority of God’s Word in your life.
• Admit God knows better than you do because he does.
• Make sure the preacher says what the passage says. Check the sermon against the Word of God. You should never close your Bible after the text is read. When you get home, review what you’ve heard against what you read in the Bible.
• Determine to do what the Bible says. Consider your life in light of what the Bible says and make all necessary changes immediately. 

15 Practical Tips for Receiving the Word
1. Prepare your heart in prayer. 
2. Pray for the proclamation of the Word. 
3. Read the passage to be preached before the service starts. 
4. Prepare your mind and body for receiving the Word. 
5. Arrive at church early. 
6. Listen to the sermon with an open Bible.
7. Take notes during the sermon.
8. Listen prayerfully. 
9. Maintain a posture of humility and submission to the Word. 
10. Apply truths from the message to yourself–and write them down. 
11. Fight against distractions for yourself and others. 
12. Discuss the sermon afterward. 
13. Review the sermon. 
14. Give God the glory for a great sermon.
15. Live it out.