BY: Sir Godfrey Gregg

Theme: Hearing the Heart Beneath the Words

As we continue through this month of November 2026, I want to speak to you about one of the most neglected disciplines in family life: listening. We live in an age of noise, where opinions are shouted and responses are formulated before the other person has finished speaking. Yet the family is meant to be a sanctuary of hearing—a place where each member can speak and be truly heard. I charge you, therefore, to cultivate the grace of listening in your homes.

The Scriptures are filled with the language of hearing. “Hear, O Israel,” begins the great confession of faith. “Let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger,” writes James. The wise man is the one who listens to counsel. Even our Lord, in the days of His flesh, listened—to the cry of the blind man, to the plea of the leper, to the anguish of the father whose son was tormented. Listening is not a passive act; it is an act of love. When you listen to your child recount the small dramas of their day, you are telling them that their life matters. When you listen to your spouse share a burden, you are bearing it with them. When you listen to an aging parent tell a story you have heard a hundred times, you are honoring the life that gave you life.

But listening requires more than the ear; it requires the heart. Too often we listen only to reply—to correct, to advise, to defend ourselves. This month, I encourage you to practice the discipline of listening without interruption. Let the sentence be finished. Let the silence be held. Ask the question, “What did you mean by that?” and wait for the answer. You will be astonished at what you discover when you stop performing and start receiving. The family that listens is the family that heals, for many wounds are healed simply by being heard.

I also urge you to listen to the unspoken words. A child who is quiet may be carrying a burden. A spouse who is short-tempered may be exhausted. A parent who is withdrawn may be grieving losses you cannot see. The attentive heart discerns what the mouth does not say. This is the ministry of the family: to notice, to inquire gently, to make room for the truth to be told. Do not be so busy managing your household that you miss the hearts within it.

Finally, listen to God together. Read the Scriptures aloud in your home. Pray together, and then sit in silence, listening for the still, small voice. The family that learns to listen to one another will also learn to listen to the Lord, for the ear trained in love becomes the ear trained in faith. This November, let your home be a place where voices are heard and hearts are understood. The grace of listening is the grace that binds.