Quotes About Empathy

Healthy relationships don't feel threatening. Loving relationships don't feel cruel. Secure relationships don't feel as if everything could implode if you dared to draw a boundary.

God made us For Giving. God made you For Giving. God made me For Giving.

But Jesus doesn't refuse to reach out to us in the middle of hurts and heartbreaks and mess-ups.

The emptiness in your heart because that person you love doesn't seek to really understand you, rarely cheers you on, and doesn't seem to want to connect intimately with you.

Which has really gotten me thinking about all the many times I assign thoughts to others that they never actually think. I hold them accountable to harsh judgments they never make. And I own a rejection from them they never gave me.

You will hear human answers that try to tie bows around the big blows of life. These sound good in a sermon but never hold up in real life. And that's when you will see what a gift it is that you've been entrusted with enough hurt to keep you humane. You'll offer the only real answer available: 'The Lord helped me survive and He'll help you too. I'll hold your hand while you find your way to Him.

People laughed at Jesus. People rejected Jesus. People misunderstood Jesus. We know this in theory, but as I sat on that rock that day, I suddenly realized what an everyday reality this was for Him. And because this was a reality for Him, He is the perfect one to turn to when rejection is a reality for us.

When we give relational access to us, it should never lead to "less safety, less sanity, or less strengthening for the individuals in the relationship.

Tackle issues not people. Am I trying to prove my point or improve the relationship?

God gave us emotions. Emotions allow us to feel as we experience life. Because we feel, we connect. We share laughter and know the gift of empathy. Our emotions are what enable us to drink deeply from love and treasure it. And yes, we also experience difficult emotions such as sadness, fear, shame, and anger. But might these be important as well?

No, it's not wrong to need people. But some of our biggest disappointments in life are the result of expectations we have of others that they can't ever possibly meet. That's when the desire to connect becomes an unrealistic need. Unrealistic neediness is actually greediness in disguise. It's saying, "My needs and desires deserve to tap into or possibly even deplete yours." This will never set a relationship up for success.

Her gifts are not a threat to yours, in fact, because we are all on the same team, her gifts and joys are a win for you.

If the person you are trying so hard not to disappoint will be displeased by a no, they'll eventually be disappointed even if you say yes.

Isn't it interesting that Jesus seemed to speak most intimately to people who were lonely?

Oh, let it be so noted about my life! That my words, my love for those who love me — and even more, my love for those who don't love me—reveal that, yes, I have been with Jesus.

You better believe when I walk into a conference now, I look for someone sitting alone and make sure she knows she is noticed. When I ease the loneliness ache in others it is beautifully eased in me.

I forgive ____ for ____, and whatever my feelings don't yet allow for the blood of Jesus will surely cover.

I may not like all the circumstances from my past, but I can see I survived. God was with me. God has used parts of what I walked through for good. God used some of it to protect me. God has certainly used it to teach me lessons and make me more empathetic for others walking through hard things. And God has used some of it to position me for where I needed to be next.

Or, "Most of the time when you open your mouth, make known the gospel. But if you're feeling really, really hurt, rally other people around your cause and make this other person look as bad as you can.

Nothing will give you emotional laryngitis like living in close proximity to someone who refuses to listen. Having emotions but no voice chokes the life out of relationships.

When a man is physically present but emotionally absent, a girl's heart can feel quite hollow and helpless.

those who are the most eager to harshly criticize others are often the ones most desperate to keep hidden their own secret sins or unresolved pain.

I was so caught up in the rush of superficial things in my world that I missed hearing the cries for help in someone else's world.

Understand that no time showing up and bringing compassion to another human is ever a waste of time. Rather, it's our chance to bring context, purpose, and meaning to all of life. Quiet moments of compassion are epic moments of battle.