“My son, if you accept my words and store up my commands within you, turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to understanding, and if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding, and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.” (Proverbs 2:1-5 NIV)

Listening to my grandchild takes practice and intentional listening.  At four she is still unable to correctly pronounce a number of letters. This issue makes various words difficult to grasp as the sound she is seeking to make comes out in the form of another letter.  Depending on the word there may be several letters in that word that are pronounced differently than the way they should be.  Thus, to have the best hope of understanding a sentence or a paragraph, one must have an intentionally listening ear.  Your whole focus must be upon what she is trying to say, which as her parents and I can attest to, is very exhausting as intentionally listening takes a lot of energy.

We are so used to being able to listen to the radio, tv or other people talking and understanding all that is being said while we are busy doing other chores.  Listening while multi-tasking is simply a way of life.  When a person has a speech deficit however, listening takes on a whole new meaning.  I often find myself praying, “Open my ears to understanding Lord, give me insight into what she is saying so that I may grasp it and be able to meet her need or respond appropriately to her conversation.”

Likewise in today’s Scripture reading, we learn that to truly hear and understand God’s word, also requires intentional listening. We must apply our whole heart to understanding it.  We must cry out to God for insight and meaning.  We must search diligently for comprehension, just as we might search for hidden treasure, for only through intentional listening through the power of His Holy Spirit, will we come to discover the true knowledge of God.  A knowledge that leads and directs us toward the best way we should walk and the plans which God has prepared for our life.  Plans to prosper us and not to harm us.  Plans to give us a hope and a future.

So, as we choose to take the time to read or listen to a word of Scripture today, may we also choose to cry out to God for an intentional listening ear and then be prepared to discover hidden treasures more valuable than silver or gold.

Prayer: Father God, help us to tune out the world and the ramblings of our minds so that we might intentionally hear with listening ears the treasures of Your word, each and every day.  In Christ’s name we pray. Amen.

Lynne Phipps
Tawatinaw, Alberta, Canada