Telling Your Precious Story and Listening to Others Will Revitalize Your Faith Five Day Bible Plan With Steve MorrisSample

Day One: Listen to those you come across – you will be surprised

It is so easy to go through life without letting the experience of others touch us. We are in a self-contained bubble most of the time. But listening to the stories of others can unlock us and help us to get a new perspective on those we share the planet with and on our faith. I had my eyes opened by a talk I heard from another pastor. He explained that he was struggling with his ministry and felt he should preach harder and harder.

‘Eventually an elder took the pastor giving our Sunday evening talk to one side, and explained. “Get to know everyone’s story and then you can be their pastor. Until then you are just a preacher.”’ (Steve Morris, Our Precious Lives [Milton Keynes: Authentic Media, 2020] p.28).

It is a profound story, isn’t it? The pastor decided to become the listening minister and as he listened to the stories of those who came to church, he began to see the heroism of everyday life, and the people he listened to began to trust him. He realized the deep tragedy in many lives.

The reading from Corinthians explores that sense of being hemmed in and in difficulty. It is useful for us to realize that behind the smiles of others may be deep despair.

James gets it in a nutshell. He urges us to be quick to listen and slow to speak and be angry. Perhaps we can all acknowledge the beautiful wisdom in this.

Prayer: 

Help us to listen to the lives of others and to have compassion. Help us to see behind the smiles and platitudes and to be there to listen when we need to. Help us to reach out, too, and speak about our lives when we feel desperate, lonely or scared.