Soft words
A soft answer turneth away wrath:
but grievous words stir up anger.
Proverbs 15:1
Lord, set a guard upon my lips,
My tongue control today;
Help me evaluate each thought
And watch each word I way.
Wherefore, my beloved brethren,
let every man be swift to hear,
slow to speak
slow to wrath
For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.
James 1:19-20
This can be very hard at times, but practice does make it much easier over time I have found.
This world would be a far better place if everyone practiced these two verses on each other. No more politicians being rude to each other, not more squabbling parents, no more bullying at school, no more fighting in the office, no more war. For one evening a year people are asked to turn off their power to save the planet. Wouldn't it be wonderful if, for just one day, people were nice to each other. . . is that asking too much?
~oOo~
I think everyone likes the idea of it, but it is too hard for them. Before they realise they have spoken, they have said something hurtful or harmful! It has become automatic, done without thought! Still, that is NO excuse for Christians, so we must continue to try hard!
ReplyDeletelove,
Bets
We need to have every thought captive to manage a soft answer everytime. It certainly isn't easy but as Bets said, no excuse for those of us who claim to be the Lords. ruling the tongue was my theme this week. It is amazing how harmonious things can be if we are concertrating on this one matter.
ReplyDeleteHave a good week Jo!
So very true! I think one thing that seems to make this even worse is that this world is so fast paced, we don't have time for anything - even thinking before we speak or get angry! If we could all take a breath and slow down a little, we'd all do better at this (and not feel so stressed, too!).
ReplyDeleteAmen! And I also agree with Clara's comment, I think our fast-paced world makes things worse.
ReplyDeleteWe need to all practice more temperance - the world would be a much better place. (maybe I should require everyone at my work place to read this beautiful post!)
ReplyDeleteThat photo is absolutely stunning!
Vicki