Liz’s Morning Devotional: Scripture selected from Upper Room
August 25, 2024
James 1:19-20
19 Know this, my dear brothers and sisters: everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to grow angry. 20 This is because an angry person doesn’t produce God’s righteousness.
Good Morning! Happy Lord’s Day!
Most of us have things or people who push our buttons. By this, I mean they get under our skin or just annoy us. Because this is not a purposeful act on the part of the annoyer or annoyance, we don’t know how to handle it. Once we are sufficiently annoyed, we often speak without taking time to think, and we quickly move from being annoyed to angry.
The longer I live, the more I have come to understand that anger solves nothing. I would love to report that I’ve mastered the advice in James of being quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to grow angry, but I am a sinner and still growing in faith.
Building on the wisdom from yesterday’s reading about releasing our worries, let's consider how this can help us in our daily interactions. When we are consumed by worry, we are less likely to be good listeners. Our focus is on what's going wrong, making it difficult to consider the advice of others.
When I struggle with the need to speak instead of listen, I remember a saying from my youth: God gave me two ears and one mouth because I should spend twice as much time listening as speaking. As I smile, I can reset my brain, reengage my listening ears, and put a stopper in my mouth.
Faithful God, Thank you for creating us. Your patience with us is a blessing. Help me always work on listening before I speak. Thank you! In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen
Thought for the day: My words, attitudes, and actions should always reflect God’s love.
Listen more! Pastor Liz
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