Oh, man, I really want to say it. The words are right there on the tip of my tongue. They are as sharp as a sword and hot enough to burn through the person who has just unloaded on me, insulted me, or said something disparaging. So often, I search for the right words to say. I consult a dictionary and a thesaurus. But I need no reference tools on these occasions! The volcanic words erupt from deep within. They make the twelve-inch journey from my heart to my lips in a nanosecond. Their engines roar on the runway of my tongue, ready to take off like an X-15 fighter jet!
But then—Scripture either stops me in my tracks or brings serious conviction after my hasty response.
1 Peter 3:9
Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing.
Sometimes the instruction of Scripture is hard. Sometimes it seems…well, impossible. It is challenging for me to let an insult go by. Like a tennis serve, it is supposed to be returned, right? And not a little lob or placement shot. It needs to be smashed hard and straight at the person who is charging the net. That’s what I want to do! But it’s not what God wants me to do.
Peter says that I should open my mouth but not let out what I really want to let out. For an insult, I am to return a blessing. No, not “God bless you for being such a jerk.” I am to say something that absorbs the cheap shot and disarms the offender. I am to make sure I don’t stoop to the same level as the one who has delivered the insult. Responding with a blessing is what God wants me to do and what he will reward me for doing.
Lord, I am really going to need your help. In my flesh, I want to retaliate. In my pride, I want to attack. In my competitive nature, I want to win with a decisive blow. Forgive me for my fleshly desires. And by your grace, help me keep my mouth shut until I can turn off the anger and reload with a blessing. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Wow Ron this was so well said and deeply convicting and convincing!! I pray often for the Holy Spirit ‘s guarding of my tongue and shutting my mouth before I say those defensive/destructive words I’m so ready to quickly respond with! Thank you for this devo.