Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Listening as Spiritual Hospitality

I loved this saying by sunnibrown.com and just had to share with my post today!

A friend of mine shared this with me and after I read it she said these words to me " I strive to be more like you!" which made my heart smile!  Here is what she shared:

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 being.  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 by which you invite strangers to become friends, to get to know their inner selves more fully, and even to dare to be silent with you!

With that being said my friends - Take some time out of your day and truly listen!