At the gym today, I noticed a personal trainer who was having a conversation with his trainee between her reps. The girl appeared to have some special needs that might make her at times socially awkward or disabled. The trainer asked her how her day had been or something along those lines, and the girl began to talk on and on about the details of her day, the phone call she would soon have with her mom, etc. He didn't hurry her or appear to have his own agenda, but just stood there and attentively listened to her.
It seems like such a simple thing, now that I think about it, but in the moment, it was such a clear reminder to me to take time to listen to people. Many times I get caught up in my "what's next?" agenda that I lose the ability to sit still and just listen. I can't recall anytime in the bible when Jesus turned someone away or rushed his conversation or lesson because of his personal schedule. In fact, if anything, he did the complete opposite, trusting that where he was in the moment was exactly where his Father wanted him, and when an opportunity to serve or teach appeared, he stepped up and took advantage of it. I often fail to recognize the situations in which I'm in because I'm too concerned with the situation that I believe I need to get to or that I'm late for. Part of this comes from overfilling my schedule, so as a sort of new year's resolution I'm going to try to provide enough buffer in my schedule and to-do list that I can be still in the moment and aware of the opportunities God may be presenting.
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