This book brings the poetic Scripture from the King James Version alive for young readers as they learn to model their prayers after the example of Jesus. It’s called The Lord’s Prayer: Words of Hope and Happiness, and it’s all about helping children pray like Jesus. That’s why we’re excited to send you a special resource as our thanks for your gift of support. It’s the key to living with hope and happiness. One of the most important roles you can play in the life of a child is teaching them to trust God through prayer. Help the Kids in Your Life Pray with Hope and Expectation! PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rickįor more Daily Hope with Rick Warren, please visit ! Only then can you work through conflict as you think of others before yourself. When you take on the character of Christ, the desire to understand before being understood becomes more natural. Only Jesus can make you more interested in someone else’s interests than in your own. Only Jesus can change my perspective-and yours. So am I! Left to my own devices, I will always choose to look out for myself before I look out for others. You are, by nature, a self-centered person. It’s not easy to think of others before yourself. Even on the cross, he was thinking of you. He was always looking beyond himself to the needs of others. You won’t see their fear, their pain, or the injustice they’ve faced. If you’re not willing to seek to understand and acknowledge other perspectives, you’re not going to be able to see the hurt of other people. All we can see is our own side of things. Everyone has their own perspective, but it seems like no one is willing see anyone else’s perspective. We’re in the thick of a pandemic filled with a lot of heated discussion around the best way to move forward. You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had” (NLT). Philippians 2:4-5 says, “Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. Seeking to understand first also allows you to see the other person’s perspective. Did I get this right?” That gives them a chance to correct and not just be understood but also feel understood. You’re saying (repeat to them what you understood they were communicating to you). That’s why you need to say, “You go first.” And then, after they’ve shared, you say, “Now, let me see if I understand. We are often so busy trying to get people to see it our way that we don’t stop to listen to what they are saying. The Bible says, “A person who answers without listening is foolish and disgraceful” ( Proverbs 18:13 ICB). You cannot hope to be understood until you are willing to do the same for others. Try to figure out what the other person is thinking and saying before you start trying to convince them convince them of your side. When you’re in conflict, the loving and Christlike way to defuse the tension is to seek to understand before seeking to be understood. You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had” ( Philippians 2:4-5 NLT). “Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. Maybe that’s why we’re urged in scripture: “Be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry.” Maybe if we listened better, the argument would never get airborne in the first place.Seek to Understand Before Being Understood So taking a few more steps to make sure we have understood a person’s concern actually helps the conversation. Someone has initiated because they want to be heard even more than they seek answers. So, I’m trying to slow down my conversation. It’s not natural for most of us, but it is ESSENTIAL. Friends, that takes work, discipline, and a willingness to serve. Years ago, I remember this great advice from Stephen Covey–“Seek to understand before being understood.” It puts the weight of responsibility on LISTENING rather than responding. At the end of the day, I have been more concerned about winning than hearing, conquering than helping. Either way, we’re being rude in a subtle yet not fully disguised way. Instead, we start preparing for battle.Įither we jump to the conclusion that we already understand what the other person has not yet completely supplied, or we’re not willing to hear a person out with a desire to understand. Why? Because once we start down that road, we have stopped listening. If I were “cartooning” this, I would put competing bubbles in the air that kept being advanced in front of the language of the person talking to us. We’re in conversation with someone, and the natural inclination is to start formulating our response, our rebuttal, our own ideas. Seek to Understand before Being Understood
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