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James 1:19

How often have you heard someone say, “Are you listening to me?”

Let’s be honest: in a culture awash in cell phones, social media, and other addictive technologies, we’re losing the fine art of listening.

I don’t mean just hearing. Not simply smiling and nodding while somebody’s mouth is moving. Not merely staying quiet until it’s “your turn” to chime in. All of us are good at that game.

Here’s how James puts it in his letter: “My dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry” (James 1:19).

Read Hebrews 10:12

I have just taken my Webster’s Dictionary off the shelf and looked up thorough. It means, “carried through to completion, careful about detail, complete in all respects.”

Thorough is my kind of word! I learned the importance of being thorough from my parents while growing up in south Texas. Most weren’t so fortunate.

Read Matthew 20:28

“What do you want to be when you grow up?”

The answers we receive are all over the map. One youngster recently told me he wanted to be either a car mechanic or a garbage collector. When I asked why, he gave the classic nine-year-old response: “So I can get dirty!” I smiled and understood as I reflected on my own childhood.

Imagine asking Jesus Christ what He wants you to be when you grow up. I honestly believe He would give the same answer to every one of us: “I want you to be different...to become a servant.” He wants us to get dirty for Him!

Read Romans 12:1–2

Is it possible to think so much like Christ that our minds operate on a different plane than those of others around us? Not only is it possible—it’s essential!

The familiar words in Romans 12:1–2 need to be reviewed.

Read 2 Corinthians 10:1–5

Do you realize the power of humanistic reasoning to block the power of Scripture? Let me be specific.

Read Psalm 42:11

When comparing the acts of forgiving and forgetting, I believe forgetting is the tougher assignment.

Why? Because forgetting is something that is shared with no other person. It’s a solo flight. All the rewards are postponed until eternity...but how great they will be on that day!

Forgetting requires us to think correctly, which means our full focus must be on the Lord and not on people. By God’s great grace, that level of freedom can be experienced.

Before we move on, let’s pause long enough to ask ourselves two questions:

Read Philippians 3:7–9

Former President Ronald Reagan kept a plaque on his desk in the oval office which read: There’s no limit to what you can accomplish if you don’t care who gets the credit.

Little wonder President Reagan achieved so much in his eight years as leader of the free world.

Yet that principle was not original with him. It comes from the heart of God. Here’s how the apostle Paul stated it:

Read Philippians 3:10–14

Could we revisit those words Paul wrote?

“I have not achieved it...forgetting the past...looking forward to what lies ahead.”

Paul's openness is best described with one word: vulnerability.

"I have not achieved/reached it" is a concept Paul mentions no less than three times in Philippians 3:10–14. Read these words again; see if you can find each of the three:

Read Philippians 3:13–14

Those who refuse to get bogged down in and anchored to the past are those who pursue the objectives of the future. People who do this are never petty. They are too involved in getting a job done to be preoccupied with yesterday’s hurts and today’s disappointments. Do you need some fresh encouragement to press on today? Read Paul’s testimony:

Read Psalm 103:1–5

Truth be told, it’s God’s forgiveness of us that makes it possible for us to forgive others.