Friday, June 30, 2017

Patient Genius


It’s not usually a stroke of genius that brings greatness, but a lifetime of patience and persistence with perseverance.

June’s Awakening, Day 30

The weak man is impetuous, the strong is patient.

 —Proverb  

True patience grows with the growth of love.

 —Gregory the Great

 Patience is a necessary ingredient of genius.

 —Benjamin Disraeli 

If I have ever made any valuable discoveries, it has been owing more to patient attention, than to any other talent.

 —Isaac Newton

 

You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, persecutions, sufferings—what kinds of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium and Lystra, the persecutions I endured. Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them. 2 Timothy 3:10–11 NIV 

 

Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. 2 Timothy 4:2 NIV 

 

            Patience takes great strength, great love, and is an essential hallmark of virtually every great invention and discovery. The invention of the light bulb, the airplane, and most discoveries in medicine took painstaking failure after failure before finding the right formula and combination of knowledge and materials that worked. Great discoveries are not wrought, nor Nobel prizes won on a sudden whim or chance roll of the dice. They often take lifetimes of persistence, perseverance, and patience. Most of the time, the answers don’t just pop into our head and poof, there we have the next greatest invention of mankind. It often takes lifetimes and the building upon prior lifetimes to come to greatness and genius. Remember, every failure is one step closer to success. Knowing what doesn’t work is just as important as discovering what does.

Author Web Page Link

Thursday, June 29, 2017

Portray Christ’s Level of Patience


Running the race to win is the goal, but more important is picking up those who have fallen and making sure they get to the finish line too.

June’s Awakening, Day 29

Be as patient with others as God has been with you.

 —Author Unknown

Patience with others is Love,

Patience with self is Hope,

Patience with God is Faith.

 —Adel Bestavros 

There are times when God asks nothing of His children except silence, patience, and tears.

 —Charles Seymour Robinson

 

A personʼs wisdom yields patience; it is to oneʼs glory to overlook an offense. Proverbs 19:11 NIV  

 

But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience as an example for those who would believe in him and receive eternal life. 1 Timothy 1:16 NIV

 

            It is one thing to be patient with God and wait on Him, but quite another to be patient with others around us. Yet, being representatives of Christ, we are called to portray patience with others in an understanding and caring way. Just like love and forgiveness, we are to display in a sincere way, the same measure of patience that Christ has shown to us. Because of our hectic lives, we have a tendency to feel that no one else is busier than we are, or has a job more important to do, and that we just don’t have the time luxury to be patient and forbearing with others. Of course, that is self-centeredness exuding itself to a high degree, and ultimately that attitude will be reaped just as we’ve sown. So, do not be surprised when you are ignored by others in your time of distress or need if you are continually impatient and disregarding of others. The world may say, “Climb to the top at all cost no matter who you step on,” but in God’s economy it’s, “Pick those up who have fallen around you and carry them with you.”

Author Web Page Link

Wednesday, June 28, 2017

Wear More Patience


Life’s journey is a marathon, not a sprint. It is patience and persistence that will enable you to endure to the end and win the prize.  

June’s Awakening, Day 28

Patience serves as a protection against wrongs as clothes do against cold. For if you put on more clothes as the cold increases, it will have no power to hurt you. So in like manner you must grow in patience when you meet with great wrongs, and they will be powerless to vex your mind.

 —Leonardo da Vinci 

Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish.

 —John Quincy Adams 

 

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Colossians 3:12 NIV

 

            Patience comes with understanding and ever-increasing maturity. Patience grows by first putting self aside and then enduring with a positive attitude the trials and tests of life. It also means living with a forward focus through the mundane events of everyday living—sometimes, that’s the most difficult. We must learn to wait our turn, put others first, still knowing too that our time will come. Never give up or lose hope in that. The single most important attitude to always have in the forefront of your mind is this: “The best is yet to come, and better still beyond that.” If you can truly make that message a part of your daily existence, the practice of patience will become much easier and life more joyful along the way. Life is a tedious journey, with heaven as our final destination, and the fulfillment of all that God has for us will not be realized till then. But for now, it’s patient endurance, focusing forward on the prize, and running hard to win. 

Author Web Page Link

Tuesday, June 27, 2017

Patient Endurance


If it’s all about you and all about now, what do you think you’ll be and have of value at the end? 
June’s Awakening, Day 27

There is nothing which so certifies the genuineness of a man’s faith as his patience and his patient endurance, his keeping on steadily in spite of everything.

 —Martyn Lloyd-Jones
God delights to increase the faith of His children. We ought, instead of wanting no trials before victory, no exercise for patience, to be willing to take them from God’s hands as a means. Trials, obstacles, difficulties and sometimes defeats, are the very food of faith.

 George Mueller
He is not truly patient who will endure only as much as he pleases and from whom he pleases. A truly patient person bears all, and it matters not whether he is wronged by someone whose social standing is superior, inferior, or equal to his own.

 —Thomas à Kempis 



being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, Colossians 1:11 NIV



            It may be one of the greatest challenges of our time, and in our hectic nonstop world, to be and practice—patience. Yet it may be one of the most powerful virtues and characteristics that we can possess and actively live each day in. We are of the “me and now” generation and mentality and have been conditioned and brainwashed by the world to believe that this is the way it should certainly be. But that is not so. Deferred gratification does wonders in building character and appreciation for the hard work and effort that goes into anything of worthwhile value. Furthermore, we are admonished to bear with others and bear under the strains of life, for surely this is what life will bring us. Patient endurance to the end and deferring the best for last is what will win the race—not satisfying self with everything the world thinks you should be and have all along the way and hoping for the best at the end. 


Author Web Page Link
http://www.christianfaithpublishing.com/books/?book=renew-my-heart-o-god-daily-devotions-for-healing-your-heart

Monday, June 26, 2017

Ungrateful Bipeds


If you don’t think gratitude is important—think again.

June’s Awakening, Day 26

I believe the best definition of man is the ungrateful biped.

 —Fyodor Dostoevsky

 The earth produces nothing viler than an ungrateful man.

 —Horace 

 

Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. Ephesians 5:4 NIV 

 

For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, because it is consecrated by the word of God and prayer.

1 Timothy 4:4–5 NIV  

 

            Not all is lost, but we have much work to do if you are belligerent, cantankerous, abrasive, offensive, and ungrateful. Who would want to spend eternity with you? And remember, eternity starts here on earth and keeps on going. It would be good to start now and make some serious life changes. Yes, cliché as it is, attitude is everything, for everything flows out of the deep recesses of the heart and mind. Change starts with you, and it starts from deep within. I don’t think that I would want, “Here Lies the Ungrateful Biped,” etched into my headstone. Yet, we all know those who are teetering dangerously close to being that. The fact is that no one in this world, nor the world itself, nor God, owe you anything. Everything is a gift from God, so we should be grateful for all we are and have, without a prideful expectation of deserving everything else. Maybe we need to go back and look at the Book of Job. You may have it all, lose it all, and God may doubly bless you in the end; or you may have nothing, but glean gold nuggets in character as you walk the path to Him. It is your attitude all along the journey that matters. Remember, gold in heaven is just another brick in the street.

Author Web Page Link

Sunday, June 25, 2017

Acts of Thanksgiving


Along with your random acts of kindness, throw in a few random acts of thanksgiving too.

June’s Awakening, Day 25

One act of thanksgiving made when things go wrong is worth a thousand when things go well.

 —Author Unknown 

Be on the lookout for mercies. The more we look for them, the more of them we will see . . . Better to lose count while naming your blessings than to lose your blessings to counting your troubles.

 —Author Unknown 

 

All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God. 2 Corinthians 4:15 NIV

 

            Random acts of kindness and random acts of thanksgiving don’t just happen spontaneously. They require a mindset to do so, an observant spirit sensitive to the needs of others, and a willingness to break from your routine and make a positive difference in someone’s life just when they need it most. It may seem contrary, but thanking God and shifting your focus from the troubles of this world can go a long way to speed the healing of hurts. Anytime we can refocus our attention toward God helps to put everything in perspective and realize that we are not alone, nor do we have to endure the burdens alone. Christ is there to enable us to make it through, carrying us, sometimes, if need be, but there for us, nevertheless.

            Be the instrument of God’s love, mercy, and grace, and be a supporter and encourager, and at the same time, empathetic and compassionate too. Help others to focus on God and all that is still good, and let them know they’re not carrying their burdens alone. 

 
Author Web Page Link

Saturday, June 24, 2017

Thankfulness Overflowing


May your heart always be ready to praise and thank God, regardless of your circumstances and the tragedies of life.

June’s Awakening, Day 24

Reflect upon your present blessings—of which every man has many—not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some.

 —Charles Dickens 

Would you know who is the greatest saint in the world? It is not he who prays most or fasts most, it is not he who lives most, but it is he who is always thankful to God, who receives everything as an instance of God’s goodness and has a heart always ready to praise God for it.

 —William Law 

 

So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. Colossians 2:6–7 NIV 

 

            Is your life overflowing with thankfulness? Are you exemplifying that thankfulness in your facial expressions, your words, and your deeds? Are others drawn to you because of the sincere gratitude that you portray? Are you the one who can grab the glimmer of hope in the most dismal of circumstances, and thank God for the glimmer, even though your heart is breaking?

            It’s time to be a contagious Christian of the overflowing thankfulness kind. That is what people will remember. That is what has a powerful and lasting impact. Understanding the gravity of tragic events, yet knowing still that God is present and there are glimmers of hope and rays of blessings to hold onto and be thankful for. Tough, yes—impossible, no. Anger, resentment, and frustration do nothing but bind you to the tragedies of life and hold you captive in bondage. To be free, to move forward, and to live life well, is to be forever thankful that you are here and God is with you, and the only certainty is that tomorrow is yet another day to be thankful for.

Author Web Page Link

Friday, June 23, 2017

Gratitude in Your Heart


A grateful heart brings a full and rich life. If you’re unappreciative and ungrateful, your life will soon be bankrupt.

June’s Awakening, Day 23

In ordinary life we hardly realize that we receive a great deal more than we give, and that it is only with gratitude that life becomes rich. It is very easy to overestimate the importance of our own achievements in comparison with what we owe others.

 —Dietrich Bonhoeffer 

A hundred times every day I remind myself that my inner and outer life depends on the labors of other men, living and dead, and that I must exert myself in order to give in the same measure as I have received and am still receiving.

 —Albert Einstein

 

Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. Colossians 3:16 NIV

 

            We stand upon the shoulders and achievements of all those who have gone before us who have often labored under great duress and personal sacrifice. Yet, how much of all that we have, do we take for granted? There is probably not a moment that goes by that we should be grateful for something and someone. Furthermore, we should take a cold, hard look at our own lives and ascertain what we are personally contributing to the next generation.

            Living a life with gratitude in our hearts is living a truly rich life. Living a life ungratefully is living a life without love. Every breath we take is a gift from God and we never know which breath will be our last. We enjoy the fruits of the labor, toil, and sacrifice of our forefathers and every generation before us. Be grateful for everything you have. Be grateful for everyone in your life. Be grateful that you woke up this morning, for tomorrow, only God knows, and you can’t say thank you to everyone down here from heaven.

Author Web Page Link

Thursday, June 22, 2017

Celebration Is Pure Joy


A disciplined heart and mind bring joy. Celebration begins with Him and completes within.

June’s Awakening, Day 22

Joy is the serious business of heaven.

—C. S. Lewis 

Every happening, great and small, is a parable whereby God speaks to us, and the art of life is to get the message.

 Malcolm Muggeridge

 

Nehemiah said, “Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” Nehemiah 8:10 NIV 

 

I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. John 15:11 NIV

 

            Celebration. The spiritual discipline of celebration is our final discipline to discuss, and like many of the others, is both an inward and corporate expression. Celebration is displayed as Christ’s joy in the life of the believer. Joy can sometimes be elusive, but is essential for a strong and effective Christian walk. It must be cultivated and developed throughout all our life experiences, no matter how difficult or tragic those experiences may be.

            The pathway to true joy may seem odd, but our joy comes from obedience to Christ. Without obedience, joy is superficial and hollow. When obedience works itself irremovably from the fabric of our lives, that is when we will find Christ’s joy within us and our joy will be complete. The responsibility is ours. The choices in life are ours. The formula for success and joy is simple—obedience brings success with joy and rebellion brings disaster with chaos. You must put self aside and devote your life to something greater—it’s Christ’s joy you want, not fleeting happiness from the world. The whole of the spiritual disciplines is to discipline your heart and mind to view life from Christ’s perspective and a Scriptural perspective. We must trust God, rely on God, and seek our rest in Him. Joyful celebration is a consciously chosen way of thinking and living each of our days in the light and love of Jesus Christ. Make that your choice today.   

 

The Spiritual Disciplines

 

Worship

(Inward, Outward, and Corporate)

 

Inward Disciplines                              Outward Disciplines                            Corporate Disciplines

 Prayer                                                  Servanthood                                      Confession

 Fasting                                                 Submission                                         Guidance

 Study                                                    Simplicity                                            Celebration

 Meditation/Reflection                     Secrecy

 A Well-Ordered Heart                      Solitude

                                                               Suffering

Author Web Page Link


Wednesday, June 21, 2017

Miracles Happen with a Thread of Hope


Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. Psalm 23:4 NKJV

 

June’s Awakening, Day 21

            I have not shared many personal anecdotes with you, but the Holy Spirit has prompted me to do so on this occasion as it is quite appropriate to our current discussion. I hope to do this more frequently in the upcoming Book 3—Revive My Soul, O God, as well as sharing the personal anecdotes of other individuals.

 

            We were staring intently at the monitors of the intensive care unit of the hospital, desperately hoping that one of the intravenous medicines would work. Four different medicines had already been administered over the last couple hours to no avail. The ammonia levels were still elevated and toxic. At these levels, for any extended period of time, brain damage was likely to ensue. Our five-and-one-half-year-old son’s liver was shutting down fast and all but nonfunctional. He was lying there heavily sedated as he was incoherent and poorly functional. There were tubes inserted everywhere. Dialysis tubes were inserted into each inner thigh to try to relieve the strain on his kidneys, which were unable to handle the toxic overload; catheter, breathing tube, nose tube for feeding, intravenous shunts in each hand, peripheral arterial line in the upper arm for medicine administration, plus a plethora of electrodes on his chest and head.

            Two of his many doctors called his mother and me into a consultation room. “Your son is exceedingly sick and his condition is quickly worsening and becoming desperate. He needs a liver transplant as soon as a donor is available,” one doctor said. Galen’s mother asked, “How long before it’s too late?” After a pause, the doctor said, “We don’t know if he can last more than six to twelve hours like this.”

              In tearful despair, and at a new level of shock that we had not known over the past two weeks of this ordeal, we returned to our son’s room, wondering how this miracle could ever come about. While we had been speaking to the doctors in the consultation room, Galen’s attending physicians were able to finally find a medicine that was effectively neutralizing the toxic ammonia in Galen’s system. If he could just receive a liver transplant in time, he may live and be fully functional.

            I remember standing by his bed praying silently to God, “He’s your son, Lord. I’m just his caretaker. How much of him do you want? Can you not take me? Am I to be like Abraham and give up my only son? Yet I pray for a miracle too. He is in your hands.” I sat down next to Galen’s mother on the couch and we could do nothing but put our faces in our hands, sobbing quietly, wondering how we could possibly be here in this place when three weeks ago our son was healthy and completely normal.

            We needed a miracle and we barely held on to a thread of hope. It was then, as we were sitting there, that one of the intensive care unit nurses came over and knelt down in front of us, lightly touching each one of our shoulders and said, “It will be okay. The Lord is in this place.”

            That was what I needed to hold on to my thread of hope for God’s miracle to happen. And it did. Very early that next morning we were awakened and they were taking Galen down for surgery. At an exceptionally high price of two young lives, and a year later a third, a donor liver, and life, was on its way.

 

            “The Lord is in this place.” Don’t miss Him. I do not know who that wonderful nurse was, but those few words I am eternally grateful for and will never forget. So, when the Holy Spirit prompts you to say or do something, follow His guidance and be obedient. A few words or a gentle, compassionate touch can bring the powerful presence of the Lord.

 

 

Liver Transplant 07/10/2008




Tuesday, June 20, 2017

Surely the Lord Is in This Place—Don’t Miss Him


God’s Spirit is everywhere. Connect, listen, sense; learn, confirm, and follow.

June’s Awakening, Day 20

I am satisfied that when the Almighty wants me to do or not to do any particular thing, he finds a way of letting me know.

 —Abraham Lincoln

And I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year: “Give me a light, that I may tread safely into the unknown.” And he replied: “Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the hand of God. That shall be to you better than light, and safer than a known way.”

 —Minnie L. Haskins

 

When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” Genesis 28:16 NIV  

 

            We can fail to hear God speak if we are not attentive, and sometimes, He gets our attention through more profound actions or events in our life. It is better for us if we do not miss His presence and voice in the first place, rather than navigating through difficult and treacherous obstacles. His guidance is not insider information to guide us into blissful success and happiness, but He will guide us onto the path that is perfectly the best for us for what He wants to accomplish through us. Also, please note that hearing God does not make one spiritually superior, it just means you are an attentive listener. And yes, you must always have discernment to know the difference between the Divine Whisper, your own natural thoughts, and the spiritual deceptions of the enemy.

            Furthermore, seeking His guidance is not being passive and doing nothing while we wait to clearly hear. We are always to be about His business, doing everything diligently that we already know we should be doing as we wait patiently for further directives. Continue to always pray and seek guidance, while exercising good judgment, wisdom, initiatives, and making intelligent and responsible choices. His guidance is not a shortcut, and sometimes, we just have to take some risks and move forward in faith.

            Once we have heard the directives of the Holy Spirit, we are expected to act appropriately and obediently. Oftentimes, however, we may want to seek confirmation of what we believe we have heard and this may come in a myriad of ways. Frequently, it is the simple goosebumps that we get when we strongly sense the presence of the Lord or tearful emotions which may ensue. Confirmation may come directly from others as they speak to you, or Scripture, words on a page, numbers, songs or sounds or music, sights or spiritual sensations, smells or visions, all of nature—including butterflies, birds, pets and more, dreams, material objects which just oddly seem to come from nowhere, or even direct visitations by angels themselves. Yes, truly God can speak to you in almost any way and if you sense something as a spiritual sensation or message, then take it as such, otherwise, take it as natural. It all depends how you are spiritually wired and God knows best how to communicate clearly to you—just be open and receptive—remember, God’s presence is everywhere.  


 
Author Web Page Link


Monday, June 19, 2017

Guidance—Hearing the Divine Whisper


Tune in your spiritual eyes and ears and be attentive to the Holy Spirit’s directives. It’s important for you, your family, and in corporate group matters as well.

June’s Awakening, Day 19

There is a way of ordering our mental life on more than one level at once. On one level we may be thinking, discussing, seeing, calculating, meeting all the demands of external affairs. But deep within, behind the scenes, at a profounder level, we may also be in prayer and adoration, song and worship and a gentle receptiveness to divine breathings.

 —Thomas Kelly 

It is not enough to hold that God did great things for our fathers: not enough to pride ourselves on the inheritance of victories of faith: not enough to build the sepulchers of those who were martyred by men unwilling, in their day of trial as we may be in our own, to hear new voices of a living God. Our duty is to see whether God is with us; whether we expect great things from Him; whether we do not practically place Him far off, forgetting that, if He is, He is about us, speaking to us words that have not been heard before, guiding us to paths on which earlier generations have not been able to enter.

 —Brooke Foss Westcott

 

Then He said, “Go out, and stand on the mountain before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice. So it was, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. Suddenly a voice came to him, and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 1 Kings 19:11–13 NKJV  

 

            Guidance. The spiritual discipline of guidance is also both inward and corporate. We may think of it primarily as inward, but there are many times where a church or group needs direction and it becomes important for all the members to hear God’s directives clearly. Furthermore, families often need guidance in major decisions such as location changes, job changes, home purchases and other important decisions where both spouses need to hear clearly from God and be in agreement.

            Guidance is all about listening and hearing clearly the directives of God and following through accordingly. The better our listening skills, the better able we will be in understanding His guidance for us. The Holy Spirit may speak to us in a myriad of ways, but most the time His still small voice will be perceived as a leading or prompting or an opening up of the mind or an inner voice or testimony to a given course of action. Oftentimes, the information just seems to pop in out of nowhere or we have a strong sense of His affirmation towards a given choice. The more we listen and hear Him, the more accustomed to His whisper we will become. Once we believe that we have heard from the Holy Spirit, then we should seek confirmation from another person or another source where God may confirm what we believe we have internally heard.

            Tomorrow we will look deeper into the aspects of divine guidance.

Author Web Page Link

Sunday, June 18, 2017

Giving a Confession/Receiving a Confession


God’s love, forgiveness, healing, and being able to move on—that’s what confession should bring.

June’s Awakening, Day 18

            You may occasionally find yourself in the predicament of a heavy heart that feels burdened to confess a sin to a trusted individual. Perhaps you are unable to contact a person you’ve wronged or perhaps that person is unwilling and unreceptive to any discussion. Here are some steps to help guide you in the proper direction to release your burden.

Giving a Confession:

            Preparation—you should always take it to God first and fully accept His forgiveness and assurance, and if you are led to confess the wrongdoing to another person, prayerfully seek God’s direction. You are always secure in Christ.

            Self-examination—seek, find, and reflect upon what the Holy Spirit is guiding you specifically to do to resolve the burden in your heart.

            Perception—all sin involves denial and you must fully understand, embrace, and overcome that. Sin, by its very presence, seeks to hide itself and distort the truth. We must spiritually perceive sin through the eyes of God and the one we’ve wronged. This is all about fixing you, not fixing the other person.

You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. Matthew 7:5 NIV  

            Ask the why and what—ponder how the sin came about and what were the effects, since oftentimes sin is tied to underlying unmet needs, unresolved issues, or wrong attitudes or perceptions. All these must be addressed appropriately or we will inevitable continue down the same cycle of sin.

            True sorrow—essential to repentance, this is the motivating force to cease from those actions or behaviors. True sorrow means taking on the pain of the one wronged and of God that resulted from your actions.

            Determination to avoid sin—must take place by the changing of attitudes, intentions, and behaviors and resolving to become better.

            Grace—fully accepting and living in the reality that His grace and forgiveness is sufficient for every sin and He remembers it no more as we have been obedient to follow His confession directives. The healing process has begun and we can confidently move on, even though it may take time for full mending to take place.

Receiving a Confession:

            If you are spiritually mature possessing the highest of noble character and integrity, you may find others coming to you to release their burden and confess a sin. Here is how you should properly prepare yourself to receive that and help mend the heavy heart of another.

            Preparation—you must prepare your heart and mind to possibly receive very shocking and disturbing information. You are not to judge but to only be a conduit to God. Everything must be in the strictest of confidence.

            Listen—truly this is your sole purpose, not to overly comment or give advice or pass judgement or question. You are to listen as a neutral observer being attentive and with appropriate body language and facial expressions of encouraging neutrality.

            Discern—let them completely finish talking and do not interject. If they stop and pause for a few moments and are looking at you inquisitively, simply say, “Yes, continue, I’m listening,” to help them feel comfortable in finishing.

            Filter everything through the Cross—always be attentive, waiting appropriately as they may need, and filter the person, their emotions, and everything you hear through Christ on the Cross.

            Continual silent prayer—inwardly, silently, and imperceptibly you are sending prayers of God’s love and forgiveness into them. Pray that they strongly feel Christ’s presence, realize what changes they may need to undertake, and are assured of His love and forgiveness and begin the healing process to move on.

            Pray, don’t counsel—when they are finished, pray out loud just what you have been praying silently as the Spirit prompts you. Do not condone nor condemn nor counsel. Just pray.

            Announce—be sure to announce assuredly in your prayer that God’s forgiveness is theirs and they are cleansed of the wrongdoing and are free to turn from that event and move on.  

            Hands on—oftentimes an appropriate light touch with the fingertips on a shoulder or the forehead can be a powerful sensation as you pray that Christ Himself is touching them now with His love and forgiveness and healing. Yes, we must always be cautious and use discernment, but this light touch is immensely powerful as you are the conduit of Christ’s presence.

Author Web Page Link