“Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live.” |
—Psalm 116:2 |
Have you ever known someone who can hear a tune, sit down at the piano, or pick up a guitar, and play that tune? We say such a person has “a good ear.” It’s really a way of saying that person has been gifted with musical intelligence.
Other musicians have to practice very, very hard to learn complicated pieces of music. They, too, may have musical intelligence. But, that musical intelligence expresses itself in a different way than the person who can “play by ear.”
Have a good, listening ear is certainly an admirable quality. Everyone likes to talk with someone who clearly is intent on listening carefully to what we have to say. Such a person gives us a sense of well-being because we realize that one cares enough to really concentrate on what we’re saying. It would not be inappropriate to say that such an intent listener also has a “good ear.”
The Psalmist gives special praise to God with the words recorded in Psalm 116:1-2:
I love the Lord, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy. Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live.
God is a truly great listener. His ear is tuned to the voices of His dearly loved children. When we come to him in prayer, we can be assured that He hears us. He listens very attentively to all that we say to Him. His love is expressed in many ways—but it is very clearly expressed through His listening ear. Yes, God has a really “good ear.”
As we begin this day, we need to remember that God always waits patiently to listen to us. We should take every opportunity to set aside time to speak with Him. We should share with God our innermost thoughts, needs, desires, triumphs, joys, as well as our sorrows. His “good ear” waits to be filled with the sound of our voices. In fact, He’s waiting to hear from us right now.