Friday, January 13, 2017

On Listening

Many voices ask for our attention.
There is a voice that says, 'Prove that you are a good person.' Another voice says, 'You’d better be ashamed of yourself.' There is a voice that says, 'Nobody really cares about you,' and one that says, 'Be sure to become successful, popular, and powerful.'

But underneath all these often very noisy voices is a still, small voice that says, 'You are my Beloved, my favor rests on you.'

That’s the voice we need most to hear. To hear that voice, however, requires special effort; it requires solitude, community, silence, and a strong determination to listen. That’s what prayer is.
It is listening to the deep voice that calls us 'My Beloved'.

Henri Nouwen

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