Being Quiet….

My Sweet Friend Kim and I.

Our staycation crew enjoying some ice cream!

A funny post I saw on Facebook that is pretty accurate! 🤣

I am sorry that I took a week off, but we had some dear friends come and visit us from South Sudan, via Idaho, and our family was busy enjoying our staycation with them! My goal is to post on here once a week, but that doesn’t always happen.

During these past few weeks, I have seen a plethora of posts on social media regarding what is going on in this world. Some of the posts have been about how we need to unite and help one another, encourage each other, and build one another up. Others have been about the “Black Lives Matter” movement, looting, protests, and shootings. I am not against posting your opinions, feelings, ideas, and dreams on social media. I think it is wonderful that we have such a platform on which to share our thoughts and share what is going on in our lives and the world around us! 

What I do not enjoy witnessing is the anger and hatred that is spewed out when someone has a different opinion than we may hold. Instead of calling someone up on the phone or messaging them privately, people feel the need to tear one another down for the whole world to read and comment on. It saddens and grieves me to see this. I have many family and friends who post things that I do not agree with, comments about the world, or our President that are horrible, but if I feel the need to share my frustration, I do not do it on social media. I call them or message them privately. And if they continue to post things that make me annoyed or frustrated, I unfollow them so I do not have to see it, unless I choose to.

The Bible speaks a lot about being quiet, not speaking, and holding our peace. It also speaks about how we should speak, when the Lord leads us to do so. Here are some verses regarding these topics:

“There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.”
‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭12:18‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“Whoever guards his mouth preserves his life; he who opens wide his lips comes to ruin.”
‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭13:3‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“The heart of the righteous ponders how to answer, but the mouth of the wicked pours out evil things.”
‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭15:28‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“Whoever restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding. Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent.”
‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭17:27-28‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“If one gives an answer before he hears, it is his folly and shame.”
‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭18:13‬ ‭ESV‬‬

I am learning to shut my mouth and to listen more. I’m learning to really think about someone else’s opinion and why they think and feel the way that they do. I’m learning that just because I may not agree with your views, lifestyle, beliefs, etc. doesn’t mean that I cannot love you and be your friend.

I think that we need to work on thinking before we speak or type, really listening when someone is talking to us; intently listening without thinking of how we are going to answer the person once they stop talking, and being quiet more. We do not always have to share our opinion; we can be quiet and pray.

We are not always going to agree with our friends and family members. If they are born again believers, we need to share God’s Truth with them, if and when they are going against His Word in their posts and beliefs. We need to be people who are willing to confront our brothers and sisters, if what they are saying is against the Word of God, but we need to do this in person, on the phone, or as a last resort, in a private text message. We need to do this in a spirit of love, and gentleness. Not in a spirit of pride and wanting to show off and prove that we are right! We need to be kind and pray before we speak. And we need to listen and try to understand where others are coming from and why they believe or see things the way that they do,

I am in no way perfect in these areas, and sometimes I will type up a well thought out rebuttal and opposing Facebook response, only to delete it because I need to talk to that person in person, not electronically. I love technology and being able to access unending amounts of information on any subject, at any given moment in the day or night. But I do not love that we can use it as a tool to tear others down and without thinking, vent our anger and frustration with no personal contact at all. This needs to change. We need to change. We need to be willing to love people enough to call them, to love people enough to go out for coffee with them and discuss our views and opinions. Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are wonderful places to post pictures and share what is going on in our lives, but they are poor choices of places to confront others. May we take the time to invest in others lives face-to-face, to understand, and to share our thoughts, beliefs, and ideas in love, not anger or frustration. And remember:

“My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.”
‭‭James‬ ‭5:19-20‬ ‭ESV‬‬