When you listen with your heart you hear what others may not. You hear truth, pain and unspoken words.
Listening is a skill that many take for granted and some do only part time. Part time listening is when you are already formulating a response to what the other person is talking about. So in other words, you are only half listening and not hearing the full story and every detail that goes along with it.
When you listen with the heart, you listen fully and take in what is being said, who is saying it, and with what emotion. You also hear what is not being said. You are able to better perceive and understand what the other person is sharing with you.
When we pray, we are always listening to hear God’s reply. The problem is that most of us listen with our ears and are frustrated, disappointed, or sad, when we don’t hear a physical response or voice. When we listen to God with our heart, we can hear His response. It comes gently at times, other times the answer comes via another person. If we are not listening with our heart we may miss the reply altogether.
When we speak, we want people to hear us, to see us for who we are and know what is important to us. We get this when someone else listens to us with their heart. If we know how we want to be heard, why is it so hard to listen to others and hear them the same way? What are the meanings and feelings beneath the words? What are they trying to convey and share with us?
Communication is always a two way street, so the next time you are travelling it make sure to listen with your heart.