In a men’s group I facilitated, one of the guidelines we told ourselves was to remember that “unsolicited advice is an emotional violation.” It was our way of reminding ourselves to “please, just listen.”
As I like to remind myself of “the power of listening“,
“Being heard
is so close to being loved
that for the average person,
they are almost indistinguishable.”
David Augsburger, from “Caring Enough to Hear and be Heard.“
And more than mere listening (though there is no need to modify the sentence by saying “mere” – since listening is so powerful by itself ), there is the dynamic of what encouragement means in our lives, especially in the lives of those who feel broken and hurt.
The direction to “walk beside them in their hurt” is so Biblical, since the koine Greek word used for encouragement in the New Testament is parakaleo – literally meaning – “to call to one’s side.”
I suspect we will be able to put this into practice this very week.
Curriculum of the Spiritual Life 
The advice from the contemplative monk is a great reminder for everyone. Especially the part about how sometimes people just need to know that they aren’t alone. Thanks for this post.
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