Listen! They do!

It may seem like students aren’t listening to us. I often have been proven wrong on that. Students will recite verbatim something I said in a bible study or some story I told. Sometimes I don’t remember what I said . . . but they do.

I’m afraid sometimes they do a better job of listening than we do. More than anything, students want us to listen to them. Listening to people shows how much we care about them and what they have to say. But good listeners are hard to find. It’s not natural. Our tendency is to give a token listen for a few seconds. We usually use the time to formulate our next thought. Then we vomit our thoughts on the nearest set of ears.

The Bible teaches us to be quick to listen and slow to speak. Listening requires us to put aside ourselves long enough to consider someone else. What is she thinking? What is he saying? What is she feeling? Stephen Covey had a popular book, Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. One of the habits he suggested was “seek first to understand, then be understood.” Oddly enough, understanding helps you to be understood.

Teenagers have something to say. We should listen.

Zach Skipper has spent over 12 years working with students. He has served as a youth minister, speaker, and bible study teacher. He is currently leading Bigtime Ministries while part-time coaching at one of the country’s leading Junior Highs in Birmingham, AL. To find out more about Zach’s ministry, contact him at www.bigtimeministries.com.