Take a moment to think about how many conflicts would diffuse or never escalate if we would just pause to listen and completely understand the other persons issue or concern. How different would things be if we didn’t respond until we prayed, asked the Holy Spirit for guidance, asked clarifying questions, and truly gave some thought to what someone else has said to us? What if when we did actually respond, we responded with respect, patience, honesty and ultimately, we responded with what the Lord has dropped in our hearts to say?

In this current social media age, we have access to information so fast that we rarely pause to digest the information; we immediately act and respond. It can make it pretty tough to pause and listen to God before responding.

This devotional focuses on James 1 verse 19 & 20 which says - My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.

I hope and pray that after these 5 days, we will understand the importance of being Slow to Speak and begin to practice it in our daily lives.

The anchor verse for this devotional (James 1:19) says “Be quick to listen.” Numerous times I have found myself in a situation where I am already thinking of a solution to a problem someone is speaking to me about or I already have a response even before the person is done and I can’t wait to jump in and cut the person off. This happens quite often especially when there is a conflict and I want to give my own opinion. I want to be vindicated; I want to be heard; I want to let it all out. 

When a person gets us all worked up and upset, we don’t always have to say all that we feel. We don’t have to speak out of our emotions. How many times have we let something out and regretted saying it almost immediately? We need to practice a little more discipline and just listen, even when you might feel like the other person is wrong. Or there might be times when someone comes to us with a problem; we should be patient and listen just as we have been advised in James 1 verse 19.

When we are Quick to Listen as the verse says, it shows humility. It shows that “I do not see myself to be wise in my own eyes” (Proverbs 3:7). It also shows that “I am not leaning on my own understanding” (Provers 3:5). It shows that I am not “Mr. or Mrs. Know it All.” Rather I am actively listening to understand and to show that I genuinely care. When we are quick to listen, we understand the full picture better, we foster growth and trust in relationships, and we diffuse any tensions. How many times have we thought a person said one thing when they actually said something else?

When we speak quickly, we rob ourselves the privilege of hearing the other person fully. We get caught up about what we are going to say versus what the person is actually saying.

I implore you today to pause before you respond and allow the other persons words to settle for a moment so that you give yourself the chance to fully hear and then respond appropriately.

Additional Reading –

Ecclesiastes 3 verse 7 - A time to be silent and a time to speak

Matthew 12 verse 36 & 37 - But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. 37 For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”

Philippians 2 verse 3 - Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.

Proverbs 12 verse 15 - The way of fools seems right to them, but the wise listen to advice.

Proverbs 3 verse 5 & 6 - Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.

Prayer – Father, thank You for Your love, thank You for being so good to me. Help me Lord today to show humility and respect for others. Help me to be quick to listen to hear what others have to say and not think that I know it all. In Jesus Name, Amen.

In Day One of this devotional, we discussed being Quick to Listen instead of responding immediately. In that time of listening, we are also exercising patience. Patience also speaks to Love. It shows how much we love people and love them Christ’s way. The Bible tells us in 1 Corinthians 13 that Love is Patient and Kind. When we are patient and wait before responding, we show God has called us to love others especially when they don’t even want us to love them or when they do not expect it.

In addition, in the time of listening to others speak, it is actually also a time to listen to the Holy Spirit and what He wants you to do or say. It is a time to prudently hold your tongue, ask clarifying questions and ask the Holy Spirit for wisdom on what to say or do and for discernment. I have found that when I take time to do this (instead of acting on impulse), the results are always much more favorable and, of course, in line with God’s will. 

It is easier to stop and listen to the Holy Spirit when we constantly stay in God’s presence. There is so much benefit to staying in God’s presence. It is where we hear Him speak to us; it is where He gives us direction on how to be of service to others. When we stay in His presence and download from Him regularly, we can be certain that the words we eventually speak to others, will be an extension of Him and His Words to us. We can stay in God’s presence by studying and meditating on His Word and also praying to God for guidance.

Additional Reading –

Proverbs 10 verse 19 - Sin is not ended by multiplying words, but the prudent hold their tongues.

1 Corinthians 13 verse 4- Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud

Prayer – I thank You Father for today. I thank You for Your grace upon my life. I pray that You help me linger in Your presence and listen to the Holy Spirit and in turn be a blessing to others by the words that I speak. In Jesus Name, Amen

In the social media age we are in now, it is so easy to be quick to speak. We see a post and we comment almost immediately, or someone does something we don’t like and we post about it. A lot of times we do this without thinking much of it. Most of the time, our comments are fine but when we act out of impulse and leave negative comments, we can delete them from the post but they stay somewhere online forever and can come back to hurt you.

We learned in day one and two of this devotional to actively listen, and to be patient and listen to the Holy Spirit for guidance and direction. After you have done this, then you can respond at the appropriate time. When we finally do speak, we should remember that the words we speak should edify and give life. Ephesians 4 verse 29 says: Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.

This does not mean we will never have conflict. There are times we have to speak the truth in love to our family and friends but the responses should always be from a place of love and should have a God-centered goal of restoration and love.

Furthermore, there might be times when the Holy Spirit does not want us to speak or respond, or He does not want us to respond immediately. This could be for several reasons. Only He can reveal this to us when we ask Him and hear from Him.

So today, I would like to ask that you assess yourself and ponder on the ways that you can be better at actively listening and being slow to speak.

Additional Reading –

Proverbs 16:24 - Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.

Ecclesiastes 5:2 - Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few.

Proverbs 29:20 - Do you see a man who speaks in haste? There is more hope for a fool than for him.

Proverbs 16:24 - Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.

Prayer – Father, thank You for giving me more clarity on being slow to speak. I pray that You will grow patience in me. I pray that You would help me to speak words that edify; help me to speak in wisdom. I pray that the words I speak will be filled with Your truth and give life to those who hear it. In Jesus Name, Amen.

James 1 verses 19c says …and slow to become angry. 

I looked up the definition of Anger and it means “a strong feeling of annoyance, displeasure, or hostility.” With everything going on around us and in the world today, it can be extremely easy to become angry. We watch the news and see rioting, wars, killings, etc. Anger seems to invade our lives inevitably. The verse does not say we should not be angry. We’ve all experienced anger one way or another in different areas of our lives – like if we didn’t pass an exam, or we didn’t get the job we wanted, or when something gets damaged in our car and we need to replace it. Other times we might even feel like we are angry with God because a prayer is not being answered;  like getting into a school you want, or marital problems, or infertility issues, etc. There are several levels of anger – from a strong displeasure like the definition says to anger that begins to take a toll on one’s health inducing high blood pressure or even panic attacks.

Anger in itself is not a sin but our reaction when we are angry can lead to sin. We need to practice self-control. Self-control is one of the fruits of the spirit (Galatians 5:22). This means when we practice self-control we portray a Godly spirit within us. When we express ourselves or react when we are angry, the outcome is rarely ever favorable. When we are slow to anger and exercise self-control, we display a level of wisdom and understanding instead of foolishness (Proverbs 14:29). 

There are several practical ways we can control our anger. One way is to turn off the news. If you feel like your blood pressure rises when you watch the news. Simply turn it off. There are other ways to stay current with things going on in your country and in the world without watching the news. Another way is to examine your self or be self aware and know the triggers for you so that when those things occur and you start to feel angry, you can step away, take a breath or take a break from whatever it is. Finally PRAY! Take the matter to God and ask Him to take away the anger.

Additional Reading –

Proverbs 16:32 - Whoever is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city.

Ephesians 4:26 - In your anger do not sin”[a]: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry

Psalm 37:8 - Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret—it leads only to evil. 

Proverbs 14:29 - People with understanding control their anger; a hot temper shows great foolishness. 

Proverbs 29:22 - An angry person stirs up conflict, and a hot-tempered person commits many sins

Ecclesiastes 7:9 - Control your temper, for anger labels you a fool

Prayer – Father, thank You for teaching me on being slow to anger. I know your word says to turn away from anger and wrath. Please help me to be aware of myself and identify those anger trigger points in my life. Please help me to control my emotions and be a good example of You to my family and those around me. In Jesus Name, Amen!

James 1 verse 20 says - because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.

The Contemporary English Version says “If you are angry, you cannot do any of the good things God wants done.”

This verse means that when we are angry, it prevents us from doing the good things God would like to use us to get done. As Christians, doing good things for God is one of the major reasons of our existence. Part of our purpose as Christians is to be used by God. What more should we desire than to be used of God? If anger will get in the way of this then we should keep our anger in check. God wants to use us to save souls. He wants us to be His hands and feet here on earth and we cannot let anger interfere with that.

Verse 21 goes on to mention the Word of God that is implanted in us. That is the Bible, the Word of God, and it will help us produce the righteousness of God. When we implant Gods Word in our hearts, we keep it buried there and this helps us to obey His Word, believe it, and value it.

This is all not easy to do but what we can do is trust in the Lord, linger in His presence constantly so that He would reveal His heart to us and we will in turn do what pleases Him. Jesus Christ is lifted high and above every power and authority. Therefore, we can Trust in Him.

Additional Reading –

Titus 2:11 & 12- God has shown us undeserved grace by coming to save all people. He taught us to give up our wicked ways and our worldly desires and to live decent and honest lives in this world. 

James 1:21 & 22 - Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you. Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 

Prayer – Father, thank you for these five days of learning more about You and what You have instructed me to do in James 1 verses 19 and 20. From this day, I choose to be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry so that I can do the good things that You want me to do in Jesus Name. Amen