We may try to pretend we are listening when in reality we aren’t. One of the common sins is not listening at all. We nod, we make eye contact, but whatever is being said is blowing in one ear and then right out the other and nothing sticks between the ears. Another sin is listening to respond. We see it happening when we are forming what we are going to say and only waiting to speak until someone takes a breath. Listening can be a sin when we hear only what we want to hear and discard everything else. You can see this when someone says, “You just proved my point” or they agree with only a portion of what’s being said.
Truly listening requires us to suspend our egos, our judgments, our opinions, and our beliefs so we can honestly hear what’s being said.