We have described empathy as communicating understanding and appreciation of how others feel. Notice the word ‘communicating’. It expresses something very important, because until our concern is communicated in some way, it remains our private experience and will be of little benefit to supporting another. It’s good to imagine how others may be thinking and feeling about things, but for the purposes of outreach it’s rarely enough to keep it to ourselves, for it is only as empathy is communicated that it impacts another in a positive way. This means expressing our shared feeling. Some years ago, I had the privilege of working with healing evangelist Oral Roberts. Oral told a story about the celebrated American stage actress and singer Mary Martin (1913–1990), who was once asked how she had achieved a particularly remarkable performance. Her answer was, “Tonight I gave my love away.” Marvellous things happen when people give their love away, and communicating empathy is one powerful way of doing that.