It All Begins By Listening

Cochabamba Redux

The first word of God to Israel of old was “to listen.” We hear it in Deut 6:4.

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.”

“To hear” is a call “to listen,” which our Jewish friends repeat every day as they recite the “shema.”

It seems to me that it is not only Israel of old that is called to ”listen” but we are all invited to begin each day by “listening”—to our own hearts, to one another, and most importantly to the promptings of our compassionate God.

I am thinking of this call to listen as I am presently leading a team of volunteers in Cochabamba teaching ESL, assisting in children’s programs at Casa Amistad, and working with Ivan Gutierrez’s church which serves the Spanish and Brazilian communities of the Andean city. My advice to the team is that we are here primarily “to listen” and “to learn.” Secondarily, “to do.” When we listen good things happen! Our hearts and minds draw in new insights and new ways of seeing the world. It happens both for us and for the communities we share with during our two week exchange of conversation and learning.

Important questions for us to consider:

To whom are we listening?

Who has our ear?

Am I listening to my own heart?

Do I take the time to be present with others and listen to the word from their hearts?

Am I seeking to hear God’s voice? Or am I settling for the chatter of the daily news feed or simply surfing the waves of my never ending social media?

The point is that every positive life-enriching step that you or I may take begins with “listening.” Let’s take the first step today—and “listen” to our hearts.