To Love, You Have to Listen

[To Love, You Have to Listen]( Current Teaching Series [Awesome Relationships]( [Listen to Today's Broadcast]( [To Love, You Have to Listen]( By Rick Warren — 08/02/2022 [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Pinterest]( [Email](mailto:?subject=I'd like to share a Daily Devotional from Pastor Rick with you&body= “We must bear the ‘burden’ of being considerate of the doubts and fears of others.” Romans 15:2 (TLB) Listening is probably the most important skill in building friendships and relationships. You can’t love people without listening to them. But sometimes people run into trouble in their relationships when they think hearing and listening are the same thing. The truth is that there’s a big difference between hearing someone and listening to them. You can hear something and not really be listening. I can’t tell you how many arguments I’ve had with my kids or my wife because I was hearing the words but not really listening to the emotions. Sometimes the words don’t even matter. Someone can say to you, “I’m fine,” but the way they say it tells you that they’re not fine. Listening means you also hear what the person isn’t saying. When you listen that way, you’re showing empathy. Empathy means to put yourself in the other person’s shoes and learn their point of view. You ask yourself, “How would I feel if I were in that situation?” Listening with empathy means you listen without interruption and you listen for what’s not being said—the feelings and fears behind the words. And you don’t need to try to fix the situation; sometimes healing comes just from someone listening! Romans 15:2 says, “We must bear the ‘burden’ of being considerate of the doubts and fears of others” (TLB). What does it mean to be considerate or to bear the burden of someone else’s doubts? It means that—when people are in so much pain that they don’t even know what they believe—they need the devotion of a loyal friend. They need someone who will be present and listen with empathy. Will you be that friend today? [PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick >>]( Talk It Over - How can you show someone through your body language that you are really listening? - What is the benefit of asking, “How would I feel if I were in that situation?” - What are some ways you can limit interruptions and distractions when you are trying to listen to someone? The post [To Love, You Have to Listen]( appeared first on [Pastor Rick's Daily Hope](. [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Pinterest]( [Email](mailto:?subject=I'd like to share a Daily Devotional from Pastor Rick with you&body= [Get the Awesome Relationships Study Kit when you give a gift to support Daily Hope!]( God made us to love one another—so one of the greatest privileges in life is to build awesome relationships that reflect his love. And you can discover how with Pastor Rick’s Awesome Relationships Bible study. This 4-session DVD and workbook study shows you how to transform any relationship with a friend, family member, or spouse into a life-giving connection filled with joy and purpose. Together with Pastor Rick, you’ll explore how to . . . • Enjoy God’s amazing design for your marriage • Build a family dynamic full of grace and love • Cultivate uplifting and meaningful friendships • Develop a friendship with God that sustains you every day And right now, all first-time gifts will be doubled, up to $10,000, thanks to a special Matching Grant! [LEARN MORE]( [Complete Audio Series (Purchase)]( Includes 6 full-length messages from Pastor Rick's series Awesome Relationships. [LEARN MORE]( [Series Summary]( Message 1: Fighting for an Awesome Marriage Message 2: Fighting for an Awesome Family Message 3: Making Friends for Eternity Message 4: What Destroys Relationships and What Builds Them Message 5: Finding the Love of Your Life Message 6: Becoming Best Friends with God [PLAY TODAY'S BROADCAST]( Pastor Rick Warren [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [Linkedin]( Enjoy today's devotional? Listen to Pastor Rick’s daily audio teaching at [PastorRick.com]( Did someone forward this devotional to you? [Subscribe to Pastor Rick Warren's Daily Devotional.]( As the founding pastor of Saddleback Church with his wife Kay, Dr. Rick Warren leads a 30,000-member congregation in California with campuses in major cities around the world. As an author, his book [The Purpose Driven Life]( is one of the best-selling nonfiction books in publishing history. It has been translated into 74 languages and sold more than 50 million copies in all formats. His book [The Purpose Driven Church]( was named one of the 100 Christian books that changed the century. Rick also founded [The PEACE Plan]( to address five global issues—spiritual emptiness, self-serving leadership, poverty, disease, and illiteracy—through the power of ordinary people in the local church. You can listen to Pastor Rick’s Daily Hope, his daily 25-minute audio teaching, and sign up for his free daily devotionals at [PastorRick.com](. © 2022 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission. You can unsubscribe by clicking the link below. Sent to: {EMAIL} [Unsubscribe]( Pastor Rick's Daily Hope, 23182 Arroyo Vista, Rancho Santa Margarita, CA 92688, United States