My sense of humor sometimes engages my mouth before thinking about what I'm saying. A few years ago, my dad was in the hospital. He had noticed that his vision was doing weird things. Then, it got to where he could see only shadows. It was pretty scary. They did test after test to try and figure out what was wrong. They were concerned that it was MS.
The doctor came in to perform a test and tell the family what was going on. It was a little tense in the room. The doctor started putting my dad through a serious of tests where he asked him to stand up, tip his head back and then touch his nose with his right index finger and then his left index finger. Of course, right in the middle of this test, my humor popped up and out of my mouth. I looked at my dad and the doctor and said, "Dad, I believe I saw a man doing this same test yesterday on the side of the road for a nice young police officer." This made my dad start to laugh in the middle of his test. I don't believe his doctor was amused....
"I often regret that I have spoken; Never that I have been silent."
"Be sure to taste you words before you spit them out."
"If you can't be kind, at least have the decency to be vague."
Have you ever said something and then wished you could take it back? If we are honest, I think we have all had those moments. Why oh why is it so hard to tame our tongues? I could quote a thousand scriptures about it. It's not like this is a new topic. It's been a problem for thousands of years. I think it may seem to be a more prevalent problem now days because we have so many opportunities to "share." There are a gazillion talk shows, news channels, and reality shows where people are encouraged to over-share whatever is on their minds. Then there is Facebook, twitter, blogs, youtube videos..etc... countless ways in which we can, and do, share every thought that comes to mind. And I thoroughly get the irony of me, a blogger, writing about this topic.
Have you ever had someone start a sentence with the words, "No offense but..." and you immediately know that the next few words are going to offend you? I'm thinking that those words are useless. They obviously believe that there is at least a fairly good chance that they are going to offend you with their words. So, why start out that way? Can you imagine if God had started out the sentences in the Bible that way? No offense but, do not be wise in your own eyes, fear the Lord and shun evil. If you think what you are going to say might be offensive, maybe you should re-evaluate the necessity of those words even being uttered. And, if you find that you absolutely must say something that might be hurtful, say it with as much love and kindness as you can.
"Wise men and women are not always silent, but they know when to be."
"We live in a world starved for solitude and silence and therefore starved for meditation and true friendship." C.S. Lewis
Sometimes we need silence. We need to be quiet and listen to what others have to say. You can learn a lot from others if you take the time to listen. I can tell you I learn a lot about what is going on in my sons life when I take the time to really listen to everything that he is saying. It's the subtle in-between meanings and nuances of his words where I learn about how his relationships with others are going, what is bugging him, what he is enjoying. And I know that there are many times that it is better for me to be silent than to share what is going on in my head, because if I interrupt we may lose this precious moment of true understanding.
"Your words have great power. Use them to support and inspire."
"The world is changed by your example, not by your opinion."
"Raise your words, not your voice. It is rain that grows flowers, not thunder."
Voicing your opinion isn't wrong. But you can do it in such a way that you lose your effectiveness. They way you say things, how you say them, can be as grating as nails on a chalkboard. I'm reminded of this verse:
"If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal."
To be effective, you need to make sure you speak in love. It's easy to speak quickly from passionate judgement. It is much harder to speak slowly with compassion. I'm still learning this lesson daily. My prayer is that God will help me speak with compassionate healing words. Words that uplift, not tear down. Words that are kind. Words that give life to others. And maybe, some words that bring laughter as well.
It turns out my dad didn't have MS. Instead he had contracted a rare form of the flu that had infected his optic nerve somehow. Then, his body began to attack his optic nerve trying to fight off the infection and had caused that nerve to swell. After a few rounds of steroids, his eyesight began to return. Unfortunately for him and for you, my sense of humor is still intact.
I'll leave you today with a few photos that I find to be silently peaceful. Enjoy!
No comments:
Post a Comment