Faith Listening

Faith Listening connects you to God. God is actively present in the world today. Whether in times of joy or sadness and in times of trauma or celebration, God is there. Faith Listening links the reality of human life with the certainty of God’s Life-Giving Spirit. By following a basic ABC pattern of discernment, you will know Who God is and How God is acting in your life.
What is discernment except the embrace of God acting in and through creation? Discernment is an active process in which a person tunes into the mystery of God at work. It calls upon wonderment and imagination. Faith listening, as a discernment skill, opens a door to respond to God's action. It provides an avenue to respond soulfully to God, rather than reacting solely to humans. It does not change the fact that something has happened, but rather invites a new creation and a new meaning.
Faith Listening asks that we bring our human stories into the reflective light of the revelation of God from Genesis to Revelation. It takes seriously Paul’s mandate, “Be reconciled to God!”
“From now on, therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view, even though we once knew Christ from a human point of view. So, if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation, everything old has passed away, see, everything has become new! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation. So, we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us, we entreat you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God” II Corinthians 5:16-20.
I met with Tom, age 38, who was injured on the job and complained of chronic back pain. Although his pain was high and his medication offered some relief, his suffering was greater. Until lately, he found comfort by going to Church. Tom told me, “But now, when I walk into a Church, all I see is the cross.” Then, he said, “I know the cross represents Jesus, his agony and passion, and Jesus points to God who is His Father, but all I see is my father who is cross. His angry words, as we sit around the dinner table, and his rage still flood my body after all these years. I cannot seem to get over it. I feel cut off from God.” Listening to his story through the ears of faith in which God is the subject, I asked him, “What is your greatest need?” Tom thought for a moment, let out a sigh and replied, “Comfort!” I said, “Isn’t God the Comforter?” He said, “Yes, the Comforter is the Holy Spirit!” Then, together we brainstormed other stories about God who comforted His people. Tom took a deep, relaxing breath when he heard Jesus’ words, “And I will pray to the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever” John 14:16. Somewhere deep inside, a change occurred. Only Tom could explain it when he was ready. So, I asked him to continue breathing in and out while saying to himself a simple Breath Prayer: “Blessed be God, The Comforter.” We sat in quiet reflection while each of us prayed inwardly the Breath Prayer. Together, we focused on God while Tom experienced the reality of being reconciled to a God he could grasp in the midst of his suffering.
This is just one of the many stories you will read that demonstrate the practicality of Faith Listening. Faith Listening is a learned ability. Its purpose is to discern Who God is and What God is doing in the context of human stories. In its simplest form, it identifies the human need and makes a connection to God who “supplies our every need” Philippians 4:19-20. In its more complex form, physical pain, emotional anguish, mental distress, behavioral trouble, or spiritual suffering points to the dynamic pneumasomatic action of integrating God’s Life with human experiences and relationships.
Faith Listening encourages the use of a Blessing Prayer and the extension of a Blessing Litany as an alternative prayer form of petition and intercession. Matilda states in her story in Chapter 1, “Now I don’t have to worry! I guess we both needed the God of Peace. This Blessing Prayer … it is like petition and intercession rolled into one.”
Faith Listening was developed at the request of health professionals and clients who wanted to learn how to integrate health and spirituality. Those who are in physical pain and spiritual distress have benefited from practicing Faith Listening. It was further refined when pastors and pastoral counselors wanted to know how to encourage wholeness of body, soul, and spirit. Those who are emotionally upset, mentally suffering, or behaviorally trapped have found reconciliation and healing. Over the course of the past forty years, many who wanted a closer walk with God or who asked, “Where is God? Why me?” have experienced a deeper relationship and been reunited with God.