Faithful Conversations in Hard Moments - Two Big Ideas

Continuing from the last blog, looking back at our recent Reflection with Claire Hollingsworth…

Two more of her “big ideas” have been sitting with me.

The first:

Scripture never asks us to choose between truth and love.

It asks us to hold them together.

Ephesians 4:15 says we are to “speak the truth in love.”

Truth shapes what we say; it keeps us honest.

Love shapes how we say it; it keeps us gentle.

Truth spoken harshly can wound.

Love without truth can enable drift.

Holding both takes maturity.

And that’s uncomfortable sometimes.

Claire shared that she will sometimes write and rewrite something before sending it, not because she’s unsure of the truth, but because tone matters.

The second idea was this:

Listening is a sacred practice.

James 1:19 — “Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.”

Most of us listen to reply. (This really struck me!!)

Very few of us listen to understand.

And yet, being heard is so close to being loved that the two can feel almost indistinguishable.

Listening doesn’t mean agreement.

It means presence.

It means honouring the image of God in the person in front of you.

When was the last time you felt deeply heard?

When was the last time that you deeply heard someone else?

What resonated with you this week?

In our next blog I’ll share Claire’s final two thoughts.