Then he said, “Let anyone who has ears to hear listen.”
‭‭Mark‬ ‭4‬:‭9‬ ‭CSB‬‬

I remember the first time someone told me that hearing is not the same as listening. At first I thought, “That’s dumb, of course they’re the same.” But after I contemplated it a while, I thought the concept, and today’s verse, were profound.

I realized it was easy to hear and not listen. I did it all the time. In school, the teacher would drone on about something, but I wouldn’t remember any of it. My ears were picking up the sound, but my brain was not engaged enough to turn the sound into words and thoughts and ideas. Memories were not formed. No pathways in my brain were created. And I’d fail the pop quiz if there were one.

I find myself doing that sometimes in conversations as an adult. At parties, someone can be talking to me, and I appear to be listening, but I’m really thinking about getting a snack or refreshing my drink or figuring out how to extract myself from the conversation. It can be awkward if they ask me a question or tell a joke.

It’s rude, I suppose, to pretend to listen. But my excuse is that I’m an introvert. It takes a lot of energy to engage and interact and listen. I get tired quickly with the effort. In fact, sometimes listening tires me out so much that I’ll turn the subtitles on when watching TV so I can read instead.

Jesus warned the people He preached to about falling into the lazy hearing-only mode. He knew that His message was life-and-death important. I’m so fortunate to have the Bible! It’s all here for me to read, again and again, when I am fresh and ready to listen. Even better than subtitles.

When I went on a boat trip once, the crew required all the passengers to gather for a safety briefing. They explained what to do in an emergency. It was important to listen well. Knowing where the life vests were and where to muster if things went south could mean the difference between living and drowning. I listened hard.

Jesus’s teaching is more important than that. It means the difference between death and eternal life. Am I listening hard?

Dear God,

Thank you for sending Jesus to teach us about you and your love. Thank you also for the people who wrote down His words so I can read them two thousand years later. Remind me of those words when I need them, and show me how to apply them to my life, to be obedient, and to share them with others who need to hear them.