“The Lord’s servant must be… patient, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth,
Suppose you have heard that a friend has fallen into some grievous sin. You love them, want what’s best for them and feel an obligation to help them. It is rather obvious, that to do this you must first overcome any physical barriers to helping them. You can’t very well correct them if you cannot communicate physically with them, say by a letter, phone call or in person. So you do what ever it takes to remedy such physical obstacles. But would it not be just as expedient to overcome any emotional barriers as well. Would it not be wise to position yourself in such a way as to be heard? This may mean holding your desire to speak before they are ready to listen. Perhaps just unconditionally loving them, being with them, or waiting on them to inquire may be the best way we can position ourselves to be heard. We are many times too quick to speak our counsel. No one would be silly enough to do this if a person were physically unable to listen. Wouldn’t it be just as foolish to try and give counsel to someone when they cannot emotionally hear us. “The tongue of the wise makes knowledge acceptable.” Prov15.2 NASB
Just me trying to be honest with God.
Winning the argument is not the same as winning your friend.
“The Lord’s servant must be… patient, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth,
Suppose you have heard that a friend has fallen into some grievous sin. You love them, want what’s best for them and feel an obligation to help them. It is rather obvious, that to do this you must first overcome any physical barriers to helping them. You can’t very well correct them if you cannot communicate physically with them, say by a letter, phone call or in person. So you do what ever it takes to remedy such physical obstacles. But would it not be just as expedient to overcome any emotional barriers as well. Would it not be wise to position yourself in such a way as to be heard? This may mean holding your desire to speak before they are ready to listen. Perhaps just unconditionally loving them, being with them, or waiting on them to inquire may be the best way we can position ourselves to be heard. We are many times too quick to speak our counsel. No one would be silly enough to do this if a person were physically unable to listen. Wouldn’t it be just as foolish to try and give counsel to someone when they cannot emotionally hear us. “The tongue of the wise makes knowledge acceptable.” Prov15.2 NASB
Suppose you have heard that a friend has fallen into some grievous sin. You love them, want what’s best for them and feel an obligation to help them. It is rather obvious, that to do this you must first overcome any physical barriers to helping them. You can’t very well correct them if you cannot communicate physically with them, say by a letter, phone call or in person. So you do what ever it takes to remedy such physical obstacles. But would it not be just as expedient to overcome any emotional barriers as well. Would it not be wise to position yourself in such a way as to be heard? This may mean holding your desire to speak before they are ready to listen. Perhaps just unconditionally loving them, being with them, or waiting on them to inquire may be the best way we can position ourselves to be heard. We are many times too quick to speak our counsel. No one would be silly enough to do this if a person were physically unable to listen. Wouldn’t it be just as foolish to try and give counsel to someone when they cannot emotionally hear us. “The tongue of the wise makes knowledge acceptable.” Prov15.2 NASB
“We consume our tomorrows fretting about our yesterdays.” Aulus Persius Flaccus
Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil. Ps.37.8 ESV
Ever stirred a fire, or perhaps an ant bed and watched the result? Most children have. Stir a fire and the flames leap up; stir an ant bed and the little buggers pour out in a frenzy. Children aren’t the only ones who like to stir up stuff. Most adults rarely pass up an opportunity to stir the soul into a frenzy of fear, anger or worry. We fret over so many things. The old word for fret was to fiddle. My dad used to say, “Stop fiddling with that boy.” He meant that I was to put down whatever it was I had in my hand and to stop messing with whatever it was that I was messing with. Have you ever noticed that fear, anger and worry worsen the more you fiddle with them. We pick something up, go over and over it in our minds and before long we have stirred ourselves into a frenzy of one kind or another. The Holy Spirit counsels us to put down whatever we are fiddling with, and to stop stirring ourselves into a frenzy. Put it down, let it go, give it to Him but by all means stop fiddling with it. 9/4/2008 ts
Ever stirred a fire, or perhaps an ant bed and watched the result? Most children have. Stir a fire and the flames leap up; stir an ant bed and the little buggers pour out in a frenzy. Children aren’t the only ones who like to stir up stuff. Most adults rarely pass up an opportunity to stir the soul into a frenzy of fear, anger or worry. We fret over so many things. The old word for fret was to fiddle. My dad used to say, “Stop fiddling with that boy.” He meant that I was to put down whatever it was I had in my hand and to stop messing with whatever it was that I was messing with. Have you ever noticed that fear, anger and worry worsen the more you fiddle with them. We pick something up, go over and over it in our minds and before long we have stirred ourselves into a frenzy of one kind or another. The Holy Spirit counsels us to put down whatever we are fiddling with, and to stop stirring ourselves into a frenzy. Put it down, let it go, give it to Him but by all means stop fiddling with it. 9/4/2008 ts
“We consume our tomorrows fretting about our yesterdays.” Aulus Persius Flaccus
Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil. Ps.37.8 ESV
Ever stirred a fire, or perhaps an ant bed and watched the result? Most children have. Stir a fire and the flames leap up; stir an ant bed and the little buggers pour out in a frenzy. Children aren’t the only ones who like to stir up stuff. Most adults rarely pass up an opportunity to stir the soul into a frenzy of fear, anger or worry. We fret over so many things. The old word for fret was to fiddle. My dad used to say, “Stop fiddling with that boy.” He meant that I was to put down whatever it was I had in my hand and to stop messing with whatever it was that I was messing with. Have you ever noticed that fear, anger and worry worsen the more you fiddle with them. We pick something up, go over and over it in our minds and before long we have stirred ourselves into a frenzy of one kind or another. The Holy Spirit counsels us to put down whatever we are fiddling with, and to stop stirring ourselves into a frenzy. Put it down, let it go, give it to Him but by all means stop fiddling with it. 9/4/2008 ts
Ever stirred a fire, or perhaps an ant bed and watched the result? Most children have. Stir a fire and the flames leap up; stir an ant bed and the little buggers pour out in a frenzy. Children aren’t the only ones who like to stir up stuff. Most adults rarely pass up an opportunity to stir the soul into a frenzy of fear, anger or worry. We fret over so many things. The old word for fret was to fiddle. My dad used to say, “Stop fiddling with that boy.” He meant that I was to put down whatever it was I had in my hand and to stop messing with whatever it was that I was messing with. Have you ever noticed that fear, anger and worry worsen the more you fiddle with them. We pick something up, go over and over it in our minds and before long we have stirred ourselves into a frenzy of one kind or another. The Holy Spirit counsels us to put down whatever we are fiddling with, and to stop stirring ourselves into a frenzy. Put it down, let it go, give it to Him but by all means stop fiddling with it. 9/4/2008 ts
“Criticizing others is a dishonest way of praising ourselves." Anonymous
“You know that he appeared to take away sins, and in him there is no sin.” 1Jo3.5 ESV
I am amazed that I still catch myself looking down on the sins of other people with some mistaken notion that I have somehow risen above them. You would think, after all this time of living with myself, I would finally get it, that “there is none righteous no not one” includes me. I think this is one of the reasons God hands me over to some of my pet sins, just to remind me that I have no room whatsoever to pass judgment on another person. That I need to be reminded of this is clear evidence that the virus of pride is still embedded in my operating system.
Brenda and I were talking yesterday about how, with God’s help, we need to purge every critical attitude we have of fellow sinners. Jesus is the only one among us who was born of a virgin mother, who alone has the right to find fault. Period! Yet, He did not come to condemn but to give His sinless life as the ransom for us all. 9/3/2008 ts
I am amazed that I still catch myself looking down on the sins of other people with some mistaken notion that I have somehow risen above them. You would think, after all this time of living with myself, I would finally get it, that “there is none righteous no not one” includes me. I think this is one of the reasons God hands me over to some of my pet sins, just to remind me that I have no room whatsoever to pass judgment on another person. That I need to be reminded of this is clear evidence that the virus of pride is still embedded in my operating system.
Brenda and I were talking yesterday about how, with God’s help, we need to purge every critical attitude we have of fellow sinners. Jesus is the only one among us who was born of a virgin mother, who alone has the right to find fault. Period! Yet, He did not come to condemn but to give His sinless life as the ransom for us all. 9/3/2008 ts
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