Listening is Hard

Shhh....

What do you hear?

(Silence)

(Silence)

(Silence)

Have you ever heard of the musical piece,

Four Thirty Three by John Cage?

It is a contemporary piece,

known to call into question the very nature of music.

It also, interestingly enough,

calls into question the very nature of silence.

Because

the piece, Four Thirty Three (4'33")

can be given by any musician at any time.

All the performer has to do is prepare,

and wait

in silence for

four minutes and thirty three seconds.

Cage, the composer

wanted to bring the audience's attention

to the ambient noise

being made throughout a performance

the wind

people whispering

movement of clothing

He wanted to think about what makes intentional music different

than the music we hear all around us

all day

every day.

The brain is always processing sound waves around us

turning noise into recognizable voices.

Hearing is easy.

Our brains do it for us.

All day

every day.

However,

listening is not so easy.

Listening is different from hearing.

Listening is the active intentional focus

on what we hear

bringing the full capacity of our conscious thought

into recognizing,

and creating patterns,

making sense of symbolism,

and responding to the sounds we hear.

The piece, Four Thirty Three

creates the space for the audience

to bring into focus

the sounds they are hearing all around them

and listen to them

instead of simply hearing them.

Listening is in fact a spiritual discipline

Listening as a requirement for a follower of Jesus

comes right out of the Bible.

Take our gospel passage for today.

If Philip hadn't been paying attention to what Jesus was saying

or if Nathanael hadn't been focusing on what Philip was telling him

if they hadn't been able to fully respond to Jesus

their lives would have been very different.

Even better!

Take the first reading for today,

from First Samuel.

Samuel was described as a boy,

which means he was less than thirteen years old.

He is serving one of the priests of the temple at Shiloh

a man named Eli.

Now the temple at Shiloh was most probably a big tent

where the religious ceremonies were held.

The story we heard today was from the third chapter,

and the first two chapters of the book set up how Samuel became a servant of the priest,

there's a great story about his mother,

and the song she sings which is the Old Testament precursor

to the Magnificant, when she finds out about Jesus.

The second chapter also covers the whole situation

with Eli's two sons

and the first prophecy which Eli receives

about the problematic behavior of his sons.

Despite the sins of the sons,

Eli does seem to be a good priest.

After Samuel runs to him multiple times

thinking he has called him,

Eli recognizes that it must be God calling who is calling Samuel.

He instructs Samuel to listen to God.

And when the Word of the Lord which Samuel hears

is against Eli and his sons

Eli listens to the vision and accepts it

because it was the Lord.

Both Samuel and Eli

are great examples of practicing listening.

As the rest of the reading we heard says,

Samuel went on to be a great prophet,

well known throughout the history of Israel,

and listening 

is what opens the stage for his grand life as the last of the judges of Israel.

Listening to God.

Listening

is having open ears

is having open hearts

is paying attention

and when you are listening,

you are more likely to hear important messages,

learn of opportunities,

hear God calling you by name.

Samuel, Samuel!

Philip!

Nathanael!

Kaycee!

Jim!

Susie!

God calls us in the night... like Samuel

God calls us in dreams... like Joseph or the Magi

God calls us through others... such as Philip and Nathanael

God calls us in situations where we have to do the right things

God calls us through songs

God calls us through our passions - whether for or against something which speaks to us strongly

When we are truly listening

we will be amazed what we can hear.

No longer do the cheap gimmicks

of smooth persuasive talking convince us.

No longer does the devil's hate or fear

incite us to feelings unbecoming of a follower of Jesus.

When we are truly listening

we can hear Jesus calling to us

asking us to follow his word and example

to follow him

in all the ways in which he leads

in giving up of ourselves

and in focusing on others.

How do we get to the be truly listening?

Being mindful of what we are hearing.

What did you hear earlier in the silence?

What do you hear when you are talking to a friend

or a family member?

What do you hear when you are talking to your spouse?

Do you hear what they are saying?

Do you hear only what you want to hear?

That is not truly listening.

When we are truly listening

we connect with other people

and the world around us in ways we had not before.

We are intimately aware of our humanity

and our relationship with others and the world

In ways many have forgotten.

When we truly listen

we are better able to pray

to what we are saying to God

and listen to what God is saying to us.

Spend some time in silence this week.

Spend some time listening deeply.

Listen to what your heart is telling you.

Listen to what your mind is telling you.

Listen to what God is telling you.

And when Jesus reaches out his hand and says,

Follow me,

Listen, 

and follow.

Amen.