Proverbs of the Day: One who spares words is knowledgeable; one who is cool in spirit has understanding.
Even fools who keep silent are considered wise:
When they close their lips, they are deemed intelligent.
(Proverbs 17:27-28)
Meditation: Does Everyone Get An Opinion?
Every morning, after sending the kids and the wife off to work, I jump on the internet to see what the news is. It’s a habit I’ve gotten into, to recharge my prayer requests and help me see what’s happening in the world. I check the news sits on Yahoo and the news on MSN mostly for their brevity. I don’t have to sit through a whole half-hour news broadcast of thumb through the papers. I can just read short sentences and find out what’s happening. For me, it’s one of the many joys of the internet.
Of course it’s not all perfect! If the news itself wasn’t enough to depress you, each of the sites have started taking opinions at the bottom of the article. “Comments” if you will. And these “Comments” truly reveal how ignorant we’ve become!
For instance, today on Yahoo you’ll read about the Super-Typhoon that ripped through the Phillipeans. What a terrible tragedy, huh? People are seen in the pictures running away from the storm carrying their loved ones in their arms. It’s truly a call to prayer as we lift up the people of the islands to God asking for his protection against this savage storm.
The whole article makes your heart break...until you get to the end of the piece. There, where 503 comments have been posted as of this morning, you’ll read these comments:
“Can’t they just sacrifice some folks and calm down the water gods?”
“Hope they are all okay...but I was just wondering...I’ve never seen a filipino marry a filipino...almost all of them want to marry foreigners. I guess for them it’s a quick ticket out of their country, but marriage is something more than that.”
Now why did these two people need to comment on this article this way? Why do they offer the option to comment on the news at all? Is their opinion that wise and powerful to affect any who reads it? Why must they argue back and forth about the stupidest things when they know(or should know) there’s no way to sway anyone’s opinions? I honestly don’t understand... Does everyone get an opinion? And does everyone’s opinion count? If comments are left anonymously, do they still matter?
Our proverbs this week speak to this phenomenon. They might sound ancient. They might have been written years and years ago, but they are still most relevant today. And yet, in the present Age of Information, I think people miss what they’re saying. Keep your opinions to yourself! We get that... If you can’t say something nice and constructive, say nothing. Yeah... I understand. Even our grandparents would agree. They would say...
Better to keep your mouth closed and be thought a fool...
Than to open it and remove all doubt.
Still some would ask... But what about what you type or write? What about the opinions you share on the internet, that big anonymous place? What about there? Is the internet a place where we can be free to share our opinions with each other, no matter how constructive or destructive they are? You’d think that was the case, given the flood of information and opinions that stream from people all over the world. The internet, they would argue, allows me to express my opinion with no consequences, no matter how hurtful it might be.
But what if these things were spoken aloud? Would any of them stand up and take credit for them? What if the things you type on the internet were read in public, with cameras fixed on you. Would you say it? I don’t think so. Most of the things that are written on the internet are NOT things people would readily share outside the internet. Most comments typed on Yahoo and other news sites wouldn’t be spoken in any public arena in the world. Spoken aloud, the foolish words
Opinions matter, that’s for sure, but opinions written at the bottom of most news items do little to increase anyone’s wisdom or understanding. Nor do they encourage productive conversation. Most comments just illustrate the measure of foolishness in our world! A measure that, if you read these comments, is off the charts!
So what do we do about it? What do we say?
Let’s look to Proverbs for answers. Proverbs tells us: “To watch over mouth and tongue is to keep our of trouble.”(Prov. 21:23). And the best way to watch over mouth and tongue is to avoid contention. Stop reading the comments! Just stop! If you’re an internet news junkie like me, avoid the bottom of the page. Just avoid it! If you’re not into the internet, there’s something to be said too. Avoid temptations that will lead you to open your mouth in foolish speech. Avoid such things.
And if you can’t avoid them... then use this simple rule. Give ten blessings for every criticism you give. If you have a list of ten criticisms, give ten blessings for each one of them. That’s over a hundred blessings! Shower good things upon the person! Not evil. If you must rebuke, do so in love and compassion, with their best interest in mind. Remember that the evil people perceive will be remembered far longer than the good you might have given.
This can apply to everything we say, not just what we type. Be compassionate. Proverbs also says: “The human spirit will endure sickness; but a broken spirit–who can bear?” (Prov. 18:14). Keep your hurtful words to yourself. Break not the spirits around you. For you never know how others will translate what you say. A “constructive comment” could be just another blow to your neighbor’s spirit.
We never realize the impact of our words on others. We can never fathom just how much of an impact we have on others in even the stupid comments we share. This, I think, the world has learned these past two weeks as the story of Tyler Clementi has risen out in the news. Tyler was the boy teased and picked on via Facebook. He ended up throwing himself off the George Washington bridge! That’s the power of words! That’s the tragedy of a broken spirit! When criticism has gotten too much, when the bad things really do outweigh all the good, even in perception. That’s what happens!
Let’s not let that happen! Let’s have every word from our mouth and every meditation of our heart be pleasing in the sight of our Lord Jesus Christ. For if we couldn’t say aloud it in front of Jesus, should we really be saying it or typing it at all? Amen!
Questions to ponder
1) How critical are you of other people? Your leaders? Your friends? Do others shun away from you when you open your mouth? Or are they anxious to hear what you have to say?
2) How could your words be better pleasing to God? Set a watch over what you say and what you type to other people this week. How might you censor your own foolishness?
3) Try this: When critical thoughts come to your mind about a particular someone, think of ten blessings and compliments you could share with them. And then share it! How does that change the way you view the world?
A Prayer to Pray
Word of God, your presence among us here reminds us that words are powerful. You have spoken grace and forgiveness to us. May we share that same grace and forgiveness in everything we say, write, text, or type, for Jesus sake. Amen.
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