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Home > Men > Thriving on God's Word > Stop, Look, Listen


Stop, Look, Listen
Theme of the Week: Thriving on God's Word
Saturday, October 26, 2002



September/October 2002 5 5 Stop, Look, Listen Theme of the Week: Thriving on God's Word
Stop, Look, Listen
Theme of the Week: Thriving on God's Word
Saturday, October 26
Q. Why is contemplating God's Word so hard? A. Trying to get boys to listen is a challenge. Activity, rather than contemplation, is their rhythm. But if they did, they might be surprised by what they heard. In a poem, William Wordsworth described meeting a boy holding to his ear a seashell "to which, in silence hushed, his very soul listened intensely." He "heard murmurings" which "expressed mysterious union" with the ocean. As a result "his countenance soon brightened with joy." Men also find it hard to follow the railway crossing sign command: "Stop, Look, Listen." We don't like to stop what we're doing—we think it wastes time. We don't find it necessary to look—we think we already know. We find it difficult to listen because as another speaks, we're formulating a rebuttal. But failure to listen intensely can mean missing the message and living in ignorance or hearing the message only partially and living with confusion. So what's the payoff for listening to God's message? The psalm writer decided to "listen carefully to what God the LORD is saying" (Psalm 85:8-9). Those who took the trouble to listen learned that God's "salvation is near to those who honor him." Men today have the Bible, godly preachers, and gifted authors on every hand speaking God's message. If they will try listening attentively, they'll find that God is still offering "peace to his people" and warning against "foolish ways." And, like boys with seashells, their countenances will be "brightened with joy." STUART BRISCOE is minister-at-large for Elmbrook Church in Brookfield, Wisconsin. Adapted from The One Year Book of Devotions for Men (Tyndale, 2000) by permission. Copyright © 2002 by the author or Christianity Today International/Men of Integrity magazine.
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September/October 2002, Vol. 5, No. 5


0Prayer for the Week

O God, I want my life to be shaped by Your Word. Help me to dig into it seriously.



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