Faith Comes From Hearing

In Revelation 1:3, John said “ . . . , and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it,...” (NIV) Hearing the word of God can be a blessing in my life.

Check out the Levites. “They read from the Book of the Law of God, making it clear and giving the meaning so that the people could understand what was being read.” (Nehemiah 8:8, NIV). In order for the Word of God to be a blessing in my life, I need to understand what I am hearing.

Experts say that my brain can hear faster than a human can speak. I need to focus my brain's extra capacity while I am listening. I need to try to understand the words I am hearing so I can apply it to my life.

I try to keep my brain focused by taking notes. I listen for the most important points and write them down. Sometimes a pre-printed outline is provided in the church bulletin. I appreciate the help in finding the important points. I'm not looking for a lot of pointers, just a few things to meditate on during the rest of the day. If God says something special to me, I write it down.

After listening, I find it helpful to talk about what I heard with some one else. Telling some one else about the important points reinforces them in my mind.

The Internet has opened up new avenues for hearing. An excellent source for downloading messages is www.discipleshiplibrary.com. I use it all the time. I recommend it to everyone.

Lots of churches make their Sunday morning sermons available for download on the web. I can listen to these messages whenever I want. iPod technology allows me to listen to any message I can download. Any where. Any time.

Besides messages, I can listen to the Bible being read. Many fine audio versions of the Bible are available for purchase. These can be loaded on to an iPod. Again, I can listen to it any where. Any time. Or if I prefer, I can play them on my CD player in my home or in my car.

A friend recently recommended this audio Bible package which he has been listening to.

Inspired By The Bible Experience: The Complete Bible

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