This past week I received an email from one of my co-workers and in it they
questioned if I was doing as much work as others in the department. How is
that for a pleasant email? Then I noticed at the end of their inquiry an
Emoji.
It looked something like this:
So…..a person can send an email and basically insinuate that you are not
doing your share of the work, but tack a smiley face on the end of it and
all is……okay?
The email really got me thinking about the idea of saying (or writing) to
others what we feel. I think in our culture the ideas of, “I just say what I
think and if you don’t like it tough” or “I was only just speaking my mind”
or “I’m just telling the truth” have given people support to say whatever
they want even if it is hurtful, because that is what they want to do.
So how should we as believers handle sharing “our minds” with others about
important matters? May I suggest three things?
1. Pray: Ask God to help you to think accurately and clearly about what
you want to say to someone. Ask Him to help you understand what is really
going on in the situation and if He could bless you with wisdom as to how to
best approach it. God is glorified by such prayers and is honored when you
ask Him to guide you through a tough conversation.
“If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to
all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.” – James 1:5
2. Love: No matter who it is you are speaking to, ask God to help you
to possess a Christ-like love toward them. It is much harder to just “speak
your mind” and run rough-shod over someone when you are asking God to help
you to speak the truth in love
15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every
respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ.” –
Ephesians 4:15
3. Guard: Ask God to guard you from being prideful in your
communication. Pride brings much trouble and the bible is filled with
warnings about it such as.
<http://biblia.com/bible/
In the mouth of the foolish is a rod of pride: but the lips of the wise
shall preserve them.
<http://biblia.com/bible/
Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.
In my life I try as much as possible to watch what I say to others and how
I say it. Before I was a believer I did not care nearly as much about my
words as I do now. When I was young in the faith I struggled to say things
to others that were pleasing in God’s sight but over time, as I have soaked
myself in God’s word, it comes much easier to me because He has blessed me
with the wisdom of His word. God has not taught me a new method of
communication, but instead He has worked in my heart and taken many things
from it that led to poor communication. Much of this has come from His call
to me to pray to Him over “difficult” conversations and to consult His word
before (or even if) I speak.
The world today has found a way to communicate so much with so little
investment. All you have to do is send a text, a tweet, or an email and you
don’t have to worry about looking someone in the eyes while having a
conversation. We can now communicate with Emojis and say hurtful things and
then feel like everything is alright when it really isn’t.
May God help us to relate to others in ways that are pleasing to Him and
may He be glorified in our pursuit of this goal. May we indeed be “slow to
speak” and quick to depend on Him.
For Him,