Stop. Look. Listen.

My kids love to tell me about a book they are reading, a game they are playing or what happened at a friend’s house. My kids share all the details. All. The. Details. Sometimes, I have a hard time tracking the point of their stories. To be totally honest, sometimes I get weary of listening to it all. My mind shifts to the messy kitchen that I need to clean up or the project I am in the middle of. There have been times where I half listen and keep going on whatever I was in the middle of. Does this describe you in any way? Maybe just a little bit? The Holy Spirit has been stirring in my heart about my focus. He has been asking me to Stop. Look. Listen.

Stop

First, I need to be willing to stop what I am doing to listen to my kids. They are sharing something that is very important to them so therefore it is important to me. If I am in the middle of something that I can’t stop, I am working on responding: “I would love to hear your story but right now is not a good time. In about 10 minutes (or whatever time needed), I would love to hear your story.” This communicates to my kids that I value them.

Look

The second thing I am working on is Look. I am still before my kids, so the next step is to look at my son or daughter when they speak to me. Not look above or behind but right into their eyes. I admit this has been hard for me. My mind is always going with something that needs to get done. Though it’s been hard, it has been a good practice for me. Looking at someone in the eye shows respect and communicates value. My kids are extremely valuable to me so I am going to keep working on Look.

Listen

As I look into my child’s eyes, I also need to Listen. Fully listen. Not halfheartedly. Guilty as charged. How many times have I half listened to my kids and thought about what I needed to do to get dinner ready or the laundry load that needed to be switched? Too many times. As I practice fully listening to my kids, one benefit is that I will get to know even more about who they are. All because I stopped to Listen.

I have a long way to go on this journey. It is hard to Stop. Look. Listen. I am so thankful the Holy Spirit has convicted me in this area. My kids aren’t going to be young forever. These years are going fast. Way too fast. When my kids look back on their childhood, I want them to remember that their Mom took time to Stop. Look. Listen. Without a shadow of a doubt, I want my kids to know they are valuable and loved more than my projects and the long list of to-dos.

How about you? Where is your focus on when your child shares something? I encourage you to Stop. Look. Listen. I think you will be surprised at what you learn. I am joining you on the journey.