Romans 12:24. What a beautiful and simple verse! But what a difficult thing to do! and how interesting that this is Verse of the Day on the YouVersion Bible App.
I start most days in that app. Before I let myself check social media, I open it and see what is the verse of the day.
Yesterday, someone mistook my passion for anger. I was making an impassioned plea for something I believe strongly. The strength of my conviction came through in my words and body language. My goal was truth and truth is good.
“Then Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, “If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples;”
John 8:31
So what do we do when we are trying to do good and it is perceived as evil?
I’ve been taught that communication is the responsibility of the one trying to communicate. In other words, we have a duty to share information in a way that it can be heard.
That seems to apply here. Am I choosing words, as well as tone and body language that conveys what I intend? If not, then I should change it.
But does this always mean that if others to not receive our communication we have not chosen appropriate means?
I don’t think it does. Effective communication requires both the communicator and receiver to be acting in good faith. Unfortunately, there are times when someone is predisposed against communication. Mischaracterizing our means allows them to deflect the content or to encourage others to do so.
The one doing so may not even realize that they are doing so. For most of us, our first instinct is to reject information which does not support our position. In other words, we resist receiving new information because change is hard and new information might require us to change.
For those of us who follow Christ, we need to examine this. The Holy Spirit is always providing us new information—insights about Scripture, their application to our life, things in our life that do not honor or glorify God. This is called sanctifying grace by those of us in the Wesleyan/Methodist stream of Christianity.
How do we know if we are overcoming evil?
We do however need to be reflective as well. We must not immediately dismiss those with whom we are not communicating as being bad actors or not acting in good faith.
However, if we examine ourselves honestly, and have done our best to communicate truthfully, the failure of the message to be received exceeds our responsibility.
So here’s my thought for today:
Perhaps evil has a vested interest in mischaracterizing truthful communication in an effort to prevent good from overcoming it.
My prayer for today: Lord, help me communicate better today. Let the words of my mouth and meditations of my heart be acceptable to you. Please teach me not to let an excess of emotion to cloud my communication. Keep me on the right side of passion and righteous indignation and not on the side of anger and bitterness. My desire is to be on the side of your good, O Lord, to participate in your will to overcome evil with good. My heart, mind, and hands are open to your guidance that I might do so. Through Christ, Amen.
“Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.”
Psalms 19:14
I loved reading this and found it touched me in places I needed to be touched. In these times that we live it appears that a defensive wall goes up immediately when trying to talk about evil and good. No one seems to want to listen and actually discuss differences. Instead it brings much anger and hurt than it should. But we must be able to speak our beliefs about what it is that is disturbing is about our responsibilities to God and each other in a way that does not end in anger and just to compromise what God’s word says.