Slow to Speak
Slow to Speak
One of the greatest gifts God has given us is the book of Proverbs. Wisdom that is so very applicable to daily life is beyond a treasure. So much help for work, relationships, decision making, and living for Jesus is found in the book of Proverbs. What I love about Proverbs is that the whole point of a proverb is to say as much as possible in as few of words as possible. Since these proverbs are from God himself, the meditation factor is huge with each proverb. Not only do you get the initial jolt of practical wisdom but you can meditate on this truth all day and find the different levels of application that God intended.
One little piece of wisdom has been a regular piece of practical advice for me. Over the years it has helped me in hundreds of situations and should have been applied to hundreds more. Proverbs 18:13, “If one gives an answer before he hears, it is his folly and shame.” James, another book of practical wisdom, says it like this, “...be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger” James 1:19. How often would you have saved yourself from looking foolish and being shamed if you would have followed this wisdom? I thought today would be a good day to think through this little proverb.
How often do we give advice or wisdom before we hear or truly understand what a person is telling us? We fail to ask good questions that would clarify what they are saying that would help us truly understand. We simply interpret their situation through our own experiences.
How quick are we to develop and then share our opinions when we only hear a portion of what is being said? Trigger words get our mouths running before our brains really hear.
Are we guilty of reading one article or hearing one report and then quickly giving our opinion? Have we even tried to hear the other side of things? Did we ever consider the bias of the one writing the article? They may not be lying but they may not be telling the whole truth. I love Proverbs 18:17. “The one who states his case first seems right, until the other comes and examines him.” Even facts can be shaded to sway opinions one way or another.
How tasty do we find gossip? How quickly do we share it?
How often do you find yourself speaking angrily to the car radio or TV? Yes, these things that set us off may be a slow boil but do those around us see the boil or the quick temper?
Do we find ourselves coming to conclusions based on truly insignificant information or observation? Isn’t this how prejudices are formed and passed along? It takes years of observation and gathering information to come to the conclusion that Jersey drivers are nuts...you cannot come to that conclusion because of two incidents on your way to work.
We are all guilty of not being slow to speak. We often speak before we have truly heard. It takes discipline and practice to not jump to conclusions. Maybe the Golden Rule helps here. We want to be truly heard when we speak. We want to be understood. We do not want one moment to define us. We do not want one comment, taken out of context, to represent how we feel. Let’s give others the same courtesy and save ourselves a lot of shame.
One of the greatest gifts God has given us is the book of Proverbs. Wisdom that is so very applicable to daily life is beyond a treasure. So much help for work, relationships, decision making, and living for Jesus is found in the book of Proverbs. What I love about Proverbs is that the whole point of a proverb is to say as much as possible in as few of words as possible. Since these proverbs are from God himself, the meditation factor is huge with each proverb. Not only do you get the initial jolt of practical wisdom but you can meditate on this truth all day and find the different levels of application that God intended.
One little piece of wisdom has been a regular piece of practical advice for me. Over the years it has helped me in hundreds of situations and should have been applied to hundreds more. Proverbs 18:13, “If one gives an answer before he hears, it is his folly and shame.” James, another book of practical wisdom, says it like this, “...be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger” James 1:19. How often would you have saved yourself from looking foolish and being shamed if you would have followed this wisdom? I thought today would be a good day to think through this little proverb.
How often do we give advice or wisdom before we hear or truly understand what a person is telling us? We fail to ask good questions that would clarify what they are saying that would help us truly understand. We simply interpret their situation through our own experiences.
How quick are we to develop and then share our opinions when we only hear a portion of what is being said? Trigger words get our mouths running before our brains really hear.
Are we guilty of reading one article or hearing one report and then quickly giving our opinion? Have we even tried to hear the other side of things? Did we ever consider the bias of the one writing the article? They may not be lying but they may not be telling the whole truth. I love Proverbs 18:17. “The one who states his case first seems right, until the other comes and examines him.” Even facts can be shaded to sway opinions one way or another.
How tasty do we find gossip? How quickly do we share it?
How often do you find yourself speaking angrily to the car radio or TV? Yes, these things that set us off may be a slow boil but do those around us see the boil or the quick temper?
Do we find ourselves coming to conclusions based on truly insignificant information or observation? Isn’t this how prejudices are formed and passed along? It takes years of observation and gathering information to come to the conclusion that Jersey drivers are nuts...you cannot come to that conclusion because of two incidents on your way to work.
We are all guilty of not being slow to speak. We often speak before we have truly heard. It takes discipline and practice to not jump to conclusions. Maybe the Golden Rule helps here. We want to be truly heard when we speak. We want to be understood. We do not want one moment to define us. We do not want one comment, taken out of context, to represent how we feel. Let’s give others the same courtesy and save ourselves a lot of shame.
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