“To listen is very hard, because it asks of us so much interior stability that we no longer need to prove ourselves by speeches, arguments, statements, or declarations. True listeners no longer have an inner need to make their presence known. They are free to receive, to welcome, to accept.
“Listening is much more than allowing another to talk while waiting for a chance to respond. Listening is paying full attention to others and welcoming them into our very beings. The beauty of listening is that, those who are listened to start feeling accepted, start taking their words more seriously and discovering their own true selves. Listening is a form of spiritual hospitality…”
Henri Nouwen
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Very challenging! I’m sure Nouen is right. The person talking to us will think more carefully and speak more accurately when he senses we’re really listening. With respect and a quiet heart. I often need help with that! Thank you, dear Ann, for the way God uses you—through your own thoughts and through the thoughts of others you somehow garner—to help us change.