God has given us ears to hear, ears on our heads to hear the sounds of the outside world and the ears of our heart, as Benedict calls them, to hear the still, small voice of God deep within. The psalmist today speaks of the ears of the heart when he says, “You have given me ears to hear you.” Yet how often do we open and use the ears of our heart?

The prophets of the Hebrew people recognized how ears closed to God were the root of their problems and repeatedly castigated them for turning a deaf ear to the Lord. Hear those prophets speaking to us today: “Foolish and senseless people, who have eyes and do not see, who have ears and do not hear.” (Jer.5:21) “Their ears are closed, they cannot listen.” (Jer.6:10) “They refused to listen, and turned a stubborn shoulder, and stopped their ears in order not to hear.” (Zech.7:11) “His ears are open, but he does not hear.” (Is.23:20)

Think how often Jesus ended his parables with the injunction: “Let anyone with ears, listen!” What he is saying is that God has a message for us, and if we listen with the ears of our heart, we can hear the Word of the Lord. Our message has our name on it and is different for each of us depending on our particular circumstances at the time. Sometimes the message is love, affirming and encouraging our hearts right where we are. Sometimes the message is mercy, convicting our hearts for wandering away from God, calling us to repent and return to the Lord. Sometimes the message is a call to serve the Lord, perhaps in some particular way, perhaps in a more general way. Sometimes the message will be to self-sacrifice, to let go and let God. Sometimes the message will be to share with others what God has given us. Sometimes the message will be “Fear not, I am with you always.” Whatever it is, it is a call, as Isaiah put it, to “Listen, so you will live.” (Is.55:3a)

If we want to open wide the ears of our heart to hear the voice of God, to dispose ourselves to receive whatever comes, we would do well to spend time with God. Being with God in prayer, in the Word, in the sacraments, being attentive, enjoying the intimacy of his presence works wonders.