Slow to Speak.

Life Lessons…

Jas 1:19 …let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath

Pro 18:13  He that answereth a matter before he heareth it, it is folly and shame unto him. 

All too often I am slow to hear, swift to speak, and swift to wrath. It's true! So very often I'll only hear a little bit (look at that second verse up there- ANSWERING A MATTER BEFORE I HEAR IT ALL),  and I'm just jabbering away with my opinion, my thoughts, my two cents worth of nonsense because I haven't even heard all of what was being said.

I've had this pointed out several times, okay a lot more than that- often enough to know it's a fact and I need to be ashamed of myself!

Have you ever found yourself just jumping into putting your two cents into a conversation before you even know what all is being said?

Sometimes I legitimately believe that a pause in a conversation means I can jump in, that a breath taken between one word and the next was just the opening I needed. There, I didn't interrupt, I responded.  Other times I'm just biting at the bit to get my thoughts out there on whatever subject it may be and impulsively I'll interrupt mid-word, you read that right, mid-word not sentence. I need to be ashamed.

So, why do I do this? In part it might be the swift to anger bit spoken of above. I have a hair trigger response in my brain. The least bit of criticism, angst, upset of any sort and my brain automatically screams in the background where I can't even hear it happening-  Shields up! Weapons ready! Fire!  Yes, just like that my go to response is one of defense at the slightest provocation and that does not make for a very easy - slow to wrath response at all!

There is a reason for these words of God's wisdom.

Jas 1:19 …let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath

Pro 18:13  He that answereth a matter before he heareth it, it is folly and shame unto him. 

When we are swift to hear- focusing on the hearing- then we are giving someone the attention they deserve. We are serving them over ourselves. We are loving that other person. We are giving respect to that person by listening to them fully. If we take the time and measure our responses in light of all they've said we further that respect, that love for them. If we do not immediately get angry no matter how painful, hurtful, inciting the words may be, again we are loving the person speaking the wounding words- in spite of their venom filled tongues. If what is being spoken to us, hurts us, intentionally meant to hurt us or not, we have to be SLOW to WRATH. If we are going to have wrath it needs to be justified, and the only way for wrath to be justified is by it being a righteous anger, and even then we aren't supposed to hang on to that anger and let it fester.

How many of us have said things impulsively we've regretted the moment they came out of our mouths? All of us, right?

By heeding God's wisdom being slow to speak, might that not help with this problem? I can't say for sure it would eliminate all the speaking of things we regret but at least the instant retort wouldn't be the issue.

I need to learn these life lessons.

Slow to speak, slow to wrath, listen attentively, and do NOT interrupt others. Better to ask if they are done speaking than assume they are done speaking.

It is my prayer that God help me with my lack of these things so that I may be better used by Him as He wills.  I'm most certainly not portraying Christ in me when I'm lacking the loving respect for others- all others- that they deserve. I am commanded to love others, please Lord, help me do this.

All by Your grace and love, through Your will Lord, Jesus Christ my Savior now and forever!!!!!!!