Episcopal Relief & Development
Contact

(0) My Cart

Gifts for Life Donate Now
menu
search
  • What We Do
    • Priorities
      • Early Childhood Development
      • Women and Girls
      • Climate Resilience
      • Disaster Response
    • Integrated Approach
      • Agriculture
      • Asset-Based Community Development
      • Clean Water
      • Disaster Resilience
      • Equality & Violence Against Women and Girls
        • 16 Days of Activism Toolkit
        • Women Deliver
      • Global Goals
      • Malaria – NetsforLife®
      • Moments That Matter®
      • Micro-finance
      • Sanitation & Hygiene
    • US Disaster Program
      • Emergency Responses
      • Long-term Recovery
      • Understanding the 3 Phases of disasters
      • What Can I Do During Disasters?
      • The Episcopal Asset Map and Disasters
      • Resource Library
    • Ukraine Crisis Response
  • Where We Work
    • Africa
      • Angola
      • Burundi
      • Democratic Republic of Congo
      • Ghana
      • Kenya
      • Liberia
      • Malawi
      • Mozambique
      • Namibia
      • South Sudan
      • Tanzania
      • Zambia
      • Zimbabwe
    • Asia
      • The Philippines
      • Sri Lanka
    • Latin America & the Caribbean
      • Brazil
      • Colombia
      • Cuba
      • El Salvador
      • Guatemala
      • Haiti
      • Honduras
    • The Middle East
    • United States
  • Who We Are
    • Mission and Mandate
    • History
    • Financials and Annual Reports
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Board And Staff
      • Board of Directors
    • We Believe
  • What You Can Do
    • Give
      • Donate Now
      • Sustainers Circle
      • Donor-Advised Funds (DAF)
      • Planned Giving
        • Matthew 25 Legacy Society
      • Other Giving Opportunities
        • Corporate Matching
        • Honor and Memorial Gifts
        • Gifts of Stock or Securities
        • Combined Federal Campaign
        • IRA Charitable Rollover Gifts
      • Our Pledge to Donors
    • Stay Informed
      • Stories
      • Sign Up
      • Newsletters
        • Seek & Serve – Newsletter
        • US Disaster News
    • Volunteer
      • Become a Ministry Partner
      • Great Ideas to Help Make a Difference
    • Pray
    • Careers
    • Faith Formation
  • Press & Resources
    • 2025 Press Releases
      • Helping Families Affected by Flooding in Kentucky
      • Launching Program Backed by Islamic Relief USA to Combat Violence Against Women and Girls in Liberia
      • Providing Resources for Congregations to Host an Episcopal Relief & Development Sunday
      • Responding to the Wildfires in Southern California
        • Episcopal Relief & Development (La Agencia Episcopal de Alivio y Desarrollo) se asocia con la diócesis de Los Ángeles en medio de los incendios forestales del sur de California
    • 2024 Press Releases
      • Responding to Hurricane Oscar and Power Outages in Cuba
      • Giving Donors A Chance to Double Their Impact During the 2024 Holiday Match Campaign
      • Responding to Hurricanes Across the United States in 2024
    • Stories
      • Helping Families Flourish Through Moments That Matter®
      • In Zimbabwe, Access to Water Creates Opportunities
      • Gerri, Margot and Tim: Volunteers Creating Lasting Change Around the World
    • Photo + Video
    • Online press kit
    • Media contact information
  • Church in Action
    • 2025 Lenten Meditations
    • Abundant Life Garden Project®
    • Church Resources
      • Worship Resources
        • Episcopal Relief & Development Sunday
      • Pray
      • Bulletin Inserts
      • Materials
    • Faith Formation
      • Ministry Planning Calendar
      • Educational Resources
      • Abundant Life Garden Project®
      • Coloring Book
      • Lectio Divina
Home | Stories | The Spiritual Practice of Listening

The Spiritual Practice of Listening

share

Christian Quote Image

You must understand this, my beloved: let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak.

— James 1:19

Making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding.

— Proverbs 2:2

I started my Christian walk late in life. When I turned toward God, I immediately felt God’s intense love for me. It was a little overwhelming, but I wanted it, I needed it and I felt a responsibility to it. My early days in church and Christian community saw me saying yes to any request to join a ministry. All good stuff: I was with God and God’s people, but I was not yet in dialogue with God or my fellow Christians. I could hear, but I was not listening.

Ministry burnout and prayer valleys soon followed. Fast-forward and the last few years in my Christian walk have evolved into a spiritual practice of listening, both in my prayer life and in ministry. I discovered that I had to start really listening to what God wanted me to know. In listening, I learned about God, about me and about God’s people. Christian maturity started when I learned to empty myself and listen for God’s voice. Now being able to recognize God’s voice, I am able to answer yes to ministries that glorify God and decline those God is not calling me to. Listening is where I give and receive love, listening is where I connect with God and with God’s people. Listening may sound like a one-way, lonely, contemplative action, but it is not. Try it! For a long time. You may find, like I did, an active, life-giving spiritual practice. 

 —————————————–

square-logo   

 Christian Kassoff is the Co-Diocesan Coordinator for the Diocese of Los Angeles
 at Episcopal Relief & Development.

 

 

Image: Women attending a training session in China. 

During Lent we will periodically highlight passages from the 2016 Lenten Meditation booklet. You can download and read the Spanish version of this meditation here: http://bit.ly/1DRfPgF.

Sign up for News
Order Gifts for Life!

Read the Latest Stories

Quick Links

Prayers for Those Affected by Disaster

The Episcopal Asset Map 

Resources & Learning

Click below to access our Resource Library and learn more about our efforts around the world.

Discover

PRAY

PRAYER RESOURCES FOR WORSHIP AND INDIVIDUAL PRAYER

Let us pray
Episcopal Relief & Development
QUICK LINKS
  • Who We Are
  • Sign Up
  • Stories
  • Contact Us
Connect With Us
  • 1.855.312.4325
  • info@episcopalrelief.org
© 2025 Episcopal Relief & Development
  • Privacy Statement
  • Sitemap

Sign up to receive the latest stories.

15987