Speaking and listening

May 12, 2022 | 24 comments

Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.

~ Winston Churchill

There are times when we need to do less talking, and more listening.

We need enough humility to admit that perhaps God has a better plan than we do, and it’s time for us to listen to what God has to say, rather than to what we personally want.

24 thoughts on “Speaking and listening”

  1. ,,,’ I will listen to thy voice, lest my footsteps stray…’
    What a beautiful hymn this is…grateful always❣️

  2. Each Day I am so encouraged and uplifted by this Blog Post and by all the other comments. It is a deep expression of fellowship and support for each other and our true relationship to our Father/Mother God.
    “Uplift your thought, with Courage go, Give of your hearts rich overflow…” (Hymn 139)
    Thank you to Evan and all.

    1. Thanks Josef, so true, funny and true. Limited material thinking can never perceive all the good ways that God can guide us, when we let Him. In truth there are no separate minds from His, with separate personal plans, so we might as well give up on all this “self” nonsense that general society praises such as self-reliance, self-will, self-determination, human outlining, etc and HUMBLY yield to God and get some mental rest and be led aright. When my thoughts seem to go astray and I think I have a “problem,” if I’m honest I usually discover it’s human outlining that is really going on.

      Thanks to everyone for great comments and support!

  3. Josef, wonderful thought.

    I’m sure everyone has heard this. Many years ago in school I had a teacher say “We were give one mouth and two ears. Use them in that proportion.”

    1. What a perceptive teacher!! Love the quote. thank you for sharing it.Robin. Thank you Evan, Josef, Rose and all for expressing thoughts and gratitude.

    1. THY WILL BE DONE by Mary Baker Eddy.– in Miscellaneous Writings is bookmarked in my Prose Works. I often have to go to it, to remind me of the absolute power of TRUTH. and the absolute outcome of all error!
      It is a protection for every one who reads and heeds it. a PROTECTION! An assurance . I thank God that Mrs. Eddy wrote this and shared it with the world– our whole world.
      Let this LAW of TRUTH to error prevail in ALL THE WORLD.
      AND in me.
      So less talking and more LISTENING.!
      THANK YOU EVAN!

  4. I hadn’t heard that, Robin – excellent thought.

    I think that once having gathered up the courage to stand up and speak, it begins
    to feel so good, that it can be difficult to stop. This is important in the healing
    practice. We are told that it is not a talking practice. I see it as a listening to
    God first before we speak, and then to have the wisdom to stop at the right
    moment and let the ideas sink in. “It is the Spirit, not the letter” that heals.

    I had a cousin who learnt how to start the lawn mower, but didn’t learn
    how to stop it. Consequently she began, and then couldn’t stop = she mowed
    across the flower beds, over the road, and up the bank the other side until it
    ground to a halt! A lesson was learnt – how and when to stop and to keep
    in control.

  5. Was looking for something. Found this in a drawer.

    Joyous Night

    Each moment filled
    With angels of God’s presence
    Skilled in gentleness and love
    Safety and peace companioned now
    As angel thoughts bring quietness
    With sweet assurance
    Of a morning filled with light

    Frances L. West

    Listening to angel thoughts. Happy listening.

  6. To “sit down and listen” is a good way to describe prayer. Get very quiet inside and listen to God.

    The Sentinel Watch podcast this week with Mark Swinney is titled Agreeing with God. Several of you have recommended this podcast and I wholly concur. He says something to the effect that actual prayer doesn’t even begin until we finish telling God what seems to be wrong, get quiet and begin to silently listen for a reply/message from God — in the form of words, a sense, a feeling, an idea. And he said it’s always accompanied by a feeling of Peace, so we can distinguish it from human thought or some other material influence. Below again is the link. Love and gratitude and a Peaceful day to all.

    https://sentinel.christianscience.com/sentinel-audio/sentinel-watch/agreeing-with-god?s=cs

    1. Yes – i too have been following Mark Swinney’s Sentinel Watch on prayer. Thanks too to Evan for all the Spiritview content.

  7. The Mark Swinney Sentinel Watch was an eye opener. Thanks for sharing it Rose. I loved the idea of keeping a daily personal journal and listening for messages from God.
    Thanks Evan, for prompting yet another great commentary subject.

  8. Dear Evan, I am deeply grateful for SpiritView and for all the so loving and wise christian scientific comments! It touches and teaches me a lot, and it is all a wonderful and healing treatment for me.
    With much Love and Gratitude to you all!♡
    I should much more say to me “Peace, be still and know that i am God” and listen more!
    I wholeheartedly tune in to what Josef said , so true.☆

  9. – The intercommunication is always from God to His idea, man. So when the body tries to talk to us, we have to see that it has no voice or intelligence.
    – Be still – stay calm & trust! Listen! Like a tick tock of a watch…the way forward is to listen to that still small voice. We can’t hear it because of willful moving forward. The way forward is to always listen. (from a lecture by Alex Fischer)
    “Listening to God in Silence by Carol Rullman”:
    https://journal.christianscience.com/shared/view/gu6h3eiykw

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