Listening......The Invisible Work...........

 Today,  Mark came home from school during the break to check on me and see how things were going. We have an empleada by the name of Etelvina. She helps in our home 2 days a week and what a blessing she has been. She has become part of our family. She is like a grandma to my children and she loves us enough to not only care for us but to pray for us with her "whole" heart. Mark offered to make a pot of coffee and while waiting we started a conversation on "thank you cards" of all things. You see here like in other Latin American countries once you say "Thank you" that is it the end of it. No need to send an extra "thank you card" in the mail. We were chatting away back and forth about the difference in culture, not that either is bad just different. Then the tables were turned.

Many of you know that her daughter Carolina is a missionary to Africa and we have ben praying for her to receive a ticket back to Costa Rica. Well, that prayer has been answered and she should arrive on Monday or late Tuesday. With this conversation we began to talk about her family. She began to share many things with us. It was amazing at the amount of Spanish that we understood. What was even more amazing was the information that she was sharing. As, Mark and I just sat and listened for about 20-25 minutes we were doing an "invisible work".....the work of listening. Sometimes, people just want to share. We all have trials and burdens and many times we don't want advise, we don't want anything from the other person...only to be heard to share what is on our heart. We now have a better understanding of her family and we can pray very specific for their needs. However, had we not taken the time to just listen we never would have learned this information and the burdens that she has carried for so long. Sometimes, the people in our lives only want to share and to be heard. I sit here thinking.....what else have I missed out on because I did not take the time to listen. How many people could I have been a blessing to by only taking the time to stop what I was doing to open my ears? I know that if we are all honest we could ask ourselves the same questions.....sometimes the greatest gift we can give someone is to just be silent and let them share their hearts.

In the Bible it says in Philippians 2: 4-5 " Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this mind be in you, which was also Christ Jesus".

James 1:19 says " Wherefore my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath":

Many times we say we are listening when in fact our ears are closed, many times we say we are listening when our eyes have gone astray. Show how much you care today by looking into the heart; open your eyes and open your ears for a freind who may need it today. Just remember that when you call on God "he is never far away". Sometimes we say we hear when in fact we only heard a sound....we never really heard what was on the heart of the one standing right in front of us. Try to be more like Jesus who in fact answers when we call....for he never sleeps nor strays and hears ever word we pray.

My challenge to you is do an invisible work today...open your ears and your heart to one who may be calling out that just needs you to Listen.