What you do when someone opens themselves to you and shares their heart with you or gets emotional about something they are experiencing is huge. It can make or break your relationships. It is important that if you truly care about someone that you use empathy with them every chance you get and that means every day. Find out how important empathy is and how it can help you elevate your mind. Then grab two free very important gifts to help you practice empathy with the loved ones in your life.

1. Elevate Your MindTip #6 – Practice Empathy
Bible verses –Romans 12:15, Ephesians 4:32, 1 Peter 3:8
https://www.openbible.info/topics/empathy
So yourbestfriend’sdogjustdied.Whatdoyou say?“Well,justgetanotherdog and you’ll be fine.”Or,
“My heartgoesout to you,I knowScoobywasyour bestfriendandconfidante andyouhadhimfor a
longtime.Iknowif I lost mydog I wouldbe devastatedandverysad.”Well,the firstone seemslike the
persondoesn’tcare at all but that isnot alwaysthe case.Some people hearsador bador horrible news
and theyjustdon’tknowwhatto say or how to say what theywantto say sotheyeithersaynothingor
theysay the wrongthing. Sometimespeople are stuckintheirownheadsanddealingwiththeirown
issuesandtheydon’tmeanto be rude or disregardyouremotions. If yousaythat to a friendwhois
grievingovertheirdeaddogtheymaygive you a dirtylook,hangup the phone if theyare tellingyou
overthe phone or justwalkaway.Theymay evenbarkat you and make youfeel reallybadforbeing
insensitive. Sayingthatisnotpracticingempathyandwhenpeople don’tpractice empathyitisusually
because theyare thinkingandfeelingonalowerlevel of consciousness.The secondone isthe one we
shouldall be strivingfor.We wantour friendorwhomeverhappenstospill the badnewstoknow that

2. we feel theirpainandwishitneverhappened.We are placingourselvesintheirshoeswhenwe saythe
secondstatement.We are takingontheirsorrow and makingsure theyknow that we are sensitive to
whattheyare experiencingorfeeling.Thisisthinkingonahigherlevel of consciousness.Thisiselevating
your mind. So,Elevate Your Mind Tip #6 isPractice Empathy.
Thisis actuallywhere the wordEmpathderivesfrombutthatdoesn’tmeanall empathshave oruse
empathy.Manyempathsare so afraidof feelingwhatsomeone else isfeelingbecauseitoverwhelms
theiremotions.The watersignsPisces,CancerandScorpioare veryemotional signsandtheyare more
prone to empathythanthe othersignsbut theydonot alwaysbehave empathetically.Theyare opento
otherpeople’semotionsmore thanthe other signsbutsome people are sospirituallyconnected,or
theyhappentohave a veryspiritual makeupthatitdoesn’tmatterwhatsigntheyare theycan tap into
otherpeople’semotionseasilyandtake ontheirpain.I mentionedbeforeinotherarticlesthat if youare
an empathyouneedtocreate a shieldaroundyourself soyouare not overwhelmedwithemotion or
energy comingfromsomeone else.AsIsaidbefore Iam an empathbutI am an earth signandyears ago
I didn’tknowwhyI wouldgetheadachesafter beinginaroomfull of people.OrwhyIwouldsee images
of peoplesfacessometimeswhenIclosedmyeyes.OrwhyI wouldstartcryingfor no reasonbecause
the crying hadnothingto dowithwhat I wasexperiencingatthe time. Or,whyI wouldhave adream
and thenmaybe the nextdayit wouldhappenorithappenedthe daybefore.Or,whyIwouldsee words
inmy dreamsand latersomethinghappenedthathadtodo withthe word I saw in mysleeporvision.
Thishappenstome all the time and I have gottenso usedto itthat I expectit.
I am opento spiritual messageswhethertheyare bador goodand I have learnedhow todeal withthem
naturallywithouttryingtorunand hide frommyspiritual giftsordrownthemout withnegative
excessestoescape them. We are spiritsfirstthenbodiessoitmakessense tobe opentothe spiritual
world.It’slike anatural supernatural occurrence thatisalreadya part of us before we are born.People
run fromit because we live inanatural worldand that iswhatwe see mostlyandall of the distractions
of life hinderusfromconnectingtoour spiritandallowingittoshine brightly. If youwere bornwithgifts
like mine thenthatmeansyouhave a callingtoreach outto othersand make sure you are close to God.
That doesn’tmeanthose thatdon’thave the same giftsare to be far away fromGod or are not
importantor have a special calling.Itjustmeansthe spiritual worldscreamsouttosome of us louder
than others.Italsomeansthat the closeryouget to yourspiritual source,God,the more spiritual
messagesyouwill receive andacceptandbe able to helpyourself andothers. Ilove toreadso I readall
kindsof spiritual booksandIhave read the entire Bible quiteafew times.Ireadaboutempathsand
whatthey experienceandwhattheirpurpose isandithit me like lightning.Iusedtosay,“OMG, that’s
me.”It was crazy.So I prayedand thenI didsome spiritual worktobuildashieldaroundme toprotect
myself fromenergyvampiresandotherpeople’semotions.Now,IamskilledatblockingitsoIam
alwayscool,calmand collectedanditmakeslife somuchmore pleasantforme.I can reach out to
people withempathyorheara reallysadstorywithoutballingmyeyesoutorgettingoveremotional
and leavingthe roombecause Ijustcan’t handle whatIheard. Some people cannothandle that. If that
soundslike youkeepreading.
I was sayingearlierthatjustbecause youare a watersigndoesn’tmeanyouwill behave inan
empatheticway.Iknowsome people thathave adifficulttime reachingouttoothersor offeringtheir
shouldertoleanonbecause theyare eithersoscaredthat theywill feel the personspainandtake iton
and getmessedupinthe heart,or theyare afraidthat if theydo lenda shoulderthat maybe whenthey
needthatpersonor someone else toleanontheywon’tbe there forthem.That’sfear.If youhave too

3. much fearinyour connectionsorinteractionswithothersyoumayendupalone orwithpeople
scratchingtheirheadswonderingwhyyouare notmuch of a friend.Idon’tbelieve anyonetrulywants
anyone tobelieve suchathingaboutthem. Some people behave inastrange waywhentheyencounter
another’ssuffering.Theymaybe meanorcruel or ignore thembecause theyfeel theydon’tknowhow
to helpthemor itmay feel foreigntoreachout to someone because maybetheycome fromachildhood
voidof affectionandconcern.Some people are uncomfortable consolingothersbutasI saidbefore if
youlearnto letall of that go andconnectto your spirityoucan change that and responddifferently;
withempathy. If youare available orsensitivetosome people’ssituationsbutinsensitive and indifferent
to othersthenyoumay seemwishywashyandpeople won’ttrustyouandwon’twant to talkto you
abouttheirdeepestheartmatters. If youhappentobe the personthatruns fromothersemotionsthen
that meansyouneedtowork on yourshieldandprettymuchgettingoveryourself.Idon’tmeanto be
offensive whenIsaythat.I justhave observedhumanbehaviorlongenoughtoknow thatwhenpeople
behave thatwayit isusuallybecause theyare thinkingaboutthemselvestoomuch or theymayfeel
theydon’thave much to offerthatpersonintermsof helpingthem.Sometimeswe cutourselvesshort
and see a failure andotherpeople seeahero.
In orderto use empathyeffectivelyyouhave toletgoof your ownhang-upsandemotions.Youhave to
getout of yourownheadand openyour heartso youcan see and understandwhatanotherpersonis
goingthrough. Thisisactuallyhowrelationshipsworkout.Whenmenandwomenor girlsandboysget
involvedwithsomeonethe relationshipwill notthrive if theyseemdistanteverytime theirsignificant
otherhas a problem.Youwantto be there emotionallyandphysicallyforyourlovedone otherwise they
may thinkyoudon’ttrulylove them. Womenmore thanmencan embrace theiremotionseasierand
manage thembetter.So,we wanta manthat can make usfeel safe because we know thatif he doeshe
isa keeperandhe issensitive,he knowshimself well andhe isnotafraidof hisemotionsbecause most
menare. Sowe want someone whowill be there forusevenif we needtocryour eyesoutinfront of a
man for2 hours.If he sticksaroundand doesn’tmake funof us or walkawayand throw hishands up
and says“I can’t deal withyoucrying,I don’tknow what to do”insteadof “what can I do to helpor
make youfeel better”,thenwe knowhe won’tmake usfeel emotionallysafe.We probablywon’tbe
able to talkto himaboutour deepestfearsandemotional upsets. Youalsodon’twanttobe the partner
or be witha partnerthat takesadvantage of yoursensitivitiesandusesyoutoleanon butignoresyou
whenyouneedthem.Thatisnot the makingsof a goodrelationship.
For youemotional folksoutthere if yourespondtosituationsandpeople tooemotionallyyoucould
pushthemaway andyou may neversee themagainbecause theywill label youasa selfishperson.If
youknowyou are notselfishthenthatmeansyouneedtoworkon yourempathicresponsesandbuilda
shield.Youcouldbe pushingthemawaybecause youare afraidof feelingtoomuchbecause youalready
feel somuch.Or youcould be pushingthemawaybecause youmayhave hurt theminsome wayand
youare so afraidof apologizingortellingthemyoudidn’tmeantohurt themthatyou justdon’tsay
anythingat all. Apologiesare powerful.Sometimesyoumaybe ina stickysituationthatyoujustdon’t
knowhowto explainyourwayoutof or make itright andthenyou justapologize andthe personfeels
betterif itis sincere.Yourapologydoessomethingtoyourconnection.Itgrowsstrongerbecause you
made the effortto sayyou were sorryand youmeantit.So your partnerwill be more likelytotrustyou
because youwere nottoo afraidto apologize andyoujustbuiltamore solidrelationship.Now,that
doesnotmean thatthe relationshipwill workout.Sometimesanapologyisjustnotenoughandthat
usuallymeansitjustwasn’tmeanttobe because everyone will notacceptyourapology.Thatdoesn’t

4. have anythingtodo withyou,ithas to do withtheirownhearts,andin that case I wouldencourage you
to letthemgo and doyour ownpersonal worktoheal and forgive yourself.
It will be verychallengingforanyof us if we crawl intoa ball andhide awayfrom everyone sowe don’t
have to deal withotherpeople’sstuff.If the worldwasperfectwe wouldn’thave toworryaboutthat.
But the worldisnot perfect.Peoplegetmurdered,childrengetmolested,people getraped,people get
infatal car accidents,homesgetinvaded,personal belongingsgetstolen,hackersare everywhere,
identitiesgetstolen,babiesdie,peoplegetbadlybeaten,racismisstill alive,genderdiscriminationis
still goingon,people losetheirjobs,peoplelose theirminds,people fail attheirattempted
accomplishments,businessesclose theirdoors, peoplelose theirhomesandenduponthe streetsor
livinginacar, dogsrun away or gethitby cars, kidsgetkidnapped,youthare sex trafficked,prostitutes
getcut upand raped,parentsabuse theirchildren,bossesignore theiremployees,terroristattacksare
still goingon,gangsterscommitevil crimes,babiesgetaborted,marriagesendindivorce,couplesbreak
up,people cheatonone anotherand I can go on and onand on. We basicallylive inaworldwhere
anythinggoesandthat meansyouwill encounteratleastone personcallingyouuporemailingyouor
writingyoua letterortextingyouor talkingtoyouin personor sendingyouavideoaboutsomething
reallysador bad theyjustexperienced.Noone isexemptfrom somethingbadhappeningtothem.If you
are alive andbreathingsomethingbadwill happenone day.Itmaynot be horrible oreventearworthy
but some dayyou will have some badnewstoreportaboutyourself, andthatmeansyouneedto
practice empathynow and use iteveryday evenforyourself.
I knowwe getjadedby watchingsomuch bad newsonthe news.It’snotveryoftenwe see or reada
reportthat makesus smile whenwe turnonthe news.Nine timesoutof tenit’sbadnewsbecause we
live inanimperfectworldfull of sinandthatmeansthe emotionswill come out.Thatalsomeanswe
may notcare too much if we do hearit because itdoesn’taffectuspersonally.Butwhenwe watchor
readthe newswe can practice empathytoo.That will helpall of uselevate ourmindssowe canconnect
witheachotheron a higherandmore spiritual level. Thatmeanstrytounderstandwhatthe personon
the t.v. or theirfamilyisgoingthroughandprayfor themall the time.Whenyouhear newscomingfrom
overseaswrite itdownina journal aboutthat specificcountryandthe problemtheyare facingandsay a
prayerfor them.Or pray all weekforone countryand anotherweekforanothercountry.Thatis
practicingempathy.
We are all spiritsinbodiesandif we mistreat someoneelsenexttousor inour livesbecause we are
jealousof themorbecause we are hurtby somethingthathappenedtousthenwe will have averyhard
time beingempathetic.We have torememberthatwe were all createdinthe image of God andthat
meanswe are connectednomatterwhatrace or genderwe are.We are all connectedtoone source
and the more spiritual we become,the more mindful we are,the more openourheartsare to everyone,
thenthe more our connectiontoour source will getstronger andmore powerful.Thenwe cancreate a
worldwhere we will nothave adesire toharm anotheror an evil intentiontodosomethingagainstour
moral judgment. The Bible talksaboutanew Jerusalem,anew heavenandearth, inthe bookof the
Revelation. Thatwill be aplace where there are nomore tearsor suffering.SoGodisalreadyplanningit
on our behalf. Thatbookinthe Bible isa revelationof thingstocome andthingsthat are already
happeningrightnow.Unfortunately,toomanypeopleare afraidof that bookbecause whenyoureadit
youmay wonderwhatthe heckyou are reading.There isalot of flowerywordsandeccentricverses.If
youare not spirituallyconnectedyoumaynotunderstandanyof it.God revealssecretstothose who
seekthe answersorthose whoseekmore thanwhat theysee.Whenyoudothat many secretswill be

5. revealedtoyouandwhenthat happensyouhave a greaterspiritual connectionthanyoudidbefore,
whichmeansyoucan practice empathyeasierona regularbasis.Itwill come natural to youbecause it
comesnatural to God.
If you are a Bible readerorevenif youjusthave knowledge of whoJesuswasyouknow thatJesusfeda
lotof people whentheydidn’tknowwheretheirnextmeal wascomingfrom.Thattookempathyfor
Jesustodo such a thing.Jesuswashedthe feetof hisdiscipleswhenmanybelieve theyshouldhave
beenthe oneswashinghisfeet.ThattookempathyforJesustodo sucha thing.Whenthe womanwith
an issue of bloodwasina crowdof people watchingandlisteningtoJesusshe didwhatshe couldtoget
close to himevenjusttotouch the hemof hisgarment.Jesusknew justbya touchwithoutlookingat
the womanand she was healed.ThattookempathyforJesustodo sucha thing.Jesuswalkedand
walkedandwalkedandwalkedandpreachedlove andkindnessandcompassionandgenerosityto
many,many people all overthe place.He didn’tignore apersoninneedandhe didn’tputupa donot
disturbsignwhensomeone askedforhelp.He wasthere,andmade ithisbusinesstotalkto all kindsof
people nomatterwhotheywere.He listenedattentively.ThattookempathyforJesustodo such a
thing.God sentJesustothe planet,whowasGod because theyare the same,to deal withpainand
sufferingandeventemptationsfromsatananddangerand harm from mankindthatendedinhimbeing
nailedtoa cross, afterbeingbeatenandtormentedwithinaninchof hislife,all forus.That took
empathyforJesusandGod to do such a thing.Jesuswasempatheticbecause he wasso spirituallyand
divinelyconnectedtoGod because he wasGod.
So if we everwantto emulate anyone inanywayI wouldhighlyrecommendemulatingthe character
and heartof Jesus.The Empathyof Christis the Passionof Christ. If we can do that andmake an effort
everysingle daytogetoverour ownemotionsandhang-upsorour ownfearsand insecurities,thenwe
can reach out to others,we canopenour heartsto the sufferinganddowntrodden,we canrespondto
our friendsandfamilieswithempathyinsteadof indifference orirritation.If youhave afriendorfamily
membergoingthrougha roughtime intheirlife rightnow andyouknow it and youcare about them
make sure you reachout insome way.Make sure you letthemknow theyare lovednomatterhow
manytimestheyhave endedupinthe circumstance theyare currentlyin.Make sure youdon’tdeny
themlove andgenerositybecauseyoufeargivingtoomuchor because youthinkyouhave alreadygiven
too much.You can nevergive toomuch love orkindness away.Itisneeded24hours a day and 7 days a
week,everymomentof everydayneedskindnessandgenerosity.Whenyoumake thiseffortevery
chance you getno matterwhat, evenif itmeansgivingyourlastdollarsoyourlovedone eatsor sleeps
ina warmbedthendo it. Ask people how theyare doingsincerelynotjustasa friendlygestureandstick
aroundto reallylistentowhattheysay.Be courteousandtrulyconcernedforpeople youencounterin
your life.Iknowhomelesspeoplecanunnerve othersometimesbutbe kindtothemtheyare suffering
and that couldbe youone day. Practice saying“thankyou” and“please”,“hello”andof course “I’m
sorry”. Take effortstopractice acts of kindnessfornoreason.Thisisall empathy. Whatyou putout in
the universe comesrightbackto youalways.Don’twithholdyourlove orgenerositybecause youare
afraidto lose whatyouhave.Give it anywayandwatch itreturn to you.Notonlythat youwill be known
as the personthat loveswithoutholdingback,like Jesus.Youwill be knownasthe one whowill open
theirheartor theirdoor to the one inneedinyour life forwhateverreason,ornomatter how longit
takesto helpthatpersongetback on theirfeetorfeel betteraboutwhattheyare goingthrough.Justdo
it.You will eliminate havingajealousspirit,youwill avoidevil behaviororactions,youwill letgoof
arrogance,you will notbe sojaded,youwill feel more secure,youwillbe able toforgive yourself and

6. otherseasier,youwill attractmore love andkindnessandgenerositytoyou,peoplewilltrustyoumore,
youwill notpushpeople awaywhentheygetemotional orspill theirheartstoyou,youwill be able to
lookyourself inthe eye inthe mirrorandsay “I love you,me”.You will feelbetterabout yourself and
youwill be thinkingonahigherlevel of consciousness.Thatiselevatingyourmind.
You can get more informationabout my missionin life @ www.pinterest.com/angelicrainbow/cicelys-
portfolio
My businesswebsite at www.rainbowuniversepageants.com
My personal website at www.angelcicely.wixsite.com/careerportfolio
Great biblical article about empathy https://mintools.com/blog/empathy.htm
Free gifts
https://www.slideshare.net/CicelyMajeed/empathy-101- Empathy 101- actual words you can
practice saying so you know what to say whensomeone is dealingwithan emotionallycharged
situation.
https://www.slideshare.net/CicelyMajeed/empathic-listening-think-sheet- My Empathic Listening
Think Sheetwhich isa role playing activity I use for the youth I work with but anyone of any age can
benefitfromit.
*Side note: take a momentto view the imageI added at the top of thisarticle with a pregnantwoman
and a male.She is pregnantand he is a man but he says“I know howyou feel”.It’s funnybecause the
first thingthat wouldnormallypopinto a person’shead is he isa man how inthe worldcouldhe know
how a pregnantwoman feels.If you pay closeattention he is empathizingwithher. It’s funnyandwill
probablymake you chucklebut it is how manymen feel when their wives get pregnant. They are
connected to the baby andthe mother andwhen they are very close or emotionallyopenand even
possiblythinkingona higherlevel of consciousnesstheycreate some kindof magical connectionwith
the pregnant woman.They start to feel what she feelsand can even go throughthe motionsof
morningsicknessand aches andpainsand beinghungryall the time. It can happento anyone inthe
pregnantwoman’slife that isemotionallyandspirituallyopenandconnected. It’s crazy but that’s
empathy too!