Becoming a Better Listener

  1. Share an experience where you were in conversation with someone but got the feeling that they weren’t really listening. How did it make you feel? Why do we value being listened to?

 

  1. One well-known author stated: “Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply.” Have you found this to be true? How?

 

  1. What do you feel are some of the barriers in giving people our attention, in actively listening when they are sharing?

 

Read: James 1:19-27

  1. How would you summarize these verses in terms of what God desires from us? What stands out in particular to you?

 

  1. How can being quick to listen and slow to speak help us be slow to become angry (v.19)? Why is it important to seek to understand before seeking to be understood? How could putting v.19 into practice this week impact your relationships with others?

 

  1. How have you experienced the truth that “human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires” (v.20)?

 

  1. James tells us that God’s Word was planted in us. What weeds can choke that Word and keep it from growing (v.21)? Explain.

 

  1. In your own words explain how the person who merely listens is different from the one who puts God’s Word into practice (v.22-25). Why is there a tendency for some believers to listen to and yet not follow God’s Word? How can we avoid this tendency in our lives?

 

  1. According to v.26-27, how do people who think they are religious differ from those who have a living faith in Jesus?

 

  1. How can you listen better to others this week?

 

  1. What do you sense God has been saying to you through this study? What are you going to do about it?