Tuesday, May 10, 2016

Are You Afraid To Live?

Do all you can to live a peaceful life.
Take care of your own business,
and do your own work as we have already told you.
1 Thessalonians 4:11 
I'm not a fan of politics. I'm not a fan of LOUD either.  Yet they seem to go hand in hand, don't they?  "I may be wrong, but MY OPPONENT IS WORSE!"
When did we get the idea that LOUD meant correct?  Solomon said, "A quiet answer defuses anger, while a sharp tongue kindles a tantrum" (Proverbs 15:1).  We encounter this every single day, don't we?  People who believe that talking over you makes them right....or does it?  My thought is simple: If you feel you must talk over me (and drown me out) then you're just full of hot air.
Have you noticed how people seem to enjoy conflict and drama?  We are NOT afraid to yell right into another person's face.  We are not afraid to make a scene.  What we seem to be afraid of is being courteous!  What we fear is allowing someone who might disagree with us actually speak!  What we fear is being quiet!
One of the things I like to do when I get to teach is to insert periods of silence.  The Psalms had the word SELAH which, I was taught, means "stop and ponder."  When these periods of silence are presented, it only takes a few seconds before the uncomfortable shifting begins and the cellphones come out.  Quiet makes us uncomfortable!
One of the things I was taught in the Army was to listen to the sounds of the birds, bugs and animals.  If they go quiet, something is wrong.  So now, I have learned that quiet scares the wits out of most people.  
Rather like the notions of:
     Living a peaceful life (getting along with others)
     Taking care of your own business (without making a scene or making it all about your drama)
     And doing your own work!
The longer I live, the more I see how we are just bound and determined to live in direct conflict with the instructions God has given us. 

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