Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. (Galatians 6:2)

Somewhere beneath the laughter
If we listen loud enough,
We can hear the heart-sounds whisper:
“I am hurting; I am sad.
Can you help me? Do you hear me?
I am struggling; it is hard.”
Whispers speak above the laughter-
When we listen loud enough.

Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.           (Romans 12:15)

We are commanded to help each other and share the burdens and sorrows of our brothers and sisters in Christ. Can we hear their heart-sounds whispering to us? Do we listen loud enough?

Recently, eight women from this church prayed the directory of this membership. In looking down the list of names, heart-sounds began whispering to us. We could hear the hurts, the sorrows, the disappointments, the regrets, the frustrations, the struggles, the pains, the burdens, the loneliness, the concerns, the fears, the losses, the needs, the wants, the hopes . . .

And we prayed the whispers.

How often do we pass each other and hear only the laughter? There are whispers from the heart being spoken all around us. Sometimes, they are written down for public prayer; sometimes, they are shared quietly with those we feel closest to; sometimes, they are not spoken at all—yet God still hears. “. . . Would not God have discovered it, since he knows the secrets of the heart?” (Psalm 44:21)

God will always hear the whispers of our hearts, but for us to hear what is unspoken, we need Jesus in our own heart to help us listen to the murmurs. Let us know each other more deeply–beyond the surface, beneath the laughter—and listen with our hearts, more like Jesus. “. . .The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” (I Samuel 16:7) In order to “carry each other’s burdens,” we must also look at the hearts of our brothers and sisters—and listen loud enough.

(Sharon G. Tate blog 09/13/15)   teacherforjesus.com     Meditations on God’s Word