Proverbs 16:21 The wise are known for their understanding, and pleasant words are persuasive.
My Thoughts
I think these words are so important. We can not lead people to God by telling them everything we think they are doing wrong. My fussing at them. By putting them down. We lead people to God by being sweet and kind. By being there when they need us. We lead people to God by being pleasant! By listening and encouraging people to make wise choices. We lead people to God by being loving, by being like Jesus. Just think how different these two sentences sound "OH YOU should have NEVER done THAT it's WRONG!" or the understanding version "I can see why you might have acted like that, but next time you are presented with the same situation you might want to try this?" We need to choose our words carefully, we need to be pleasant to be persuasive. When we present ourselves as judgemental and better than we loose all creditability and put people on the defensive. People on the defensive then justify their actions and convince themselves what they did is right, they stand firm so they won't loose face. If we want to be persuasive we need to be understanding and kind. We need to not judge but steer gently with small nudges and words of great encouragement. Which person would you want to listen to?
1 comment:
I really like this verse. And your thoughts on it. Understanding goes such a long ways. I know I need people to be understanding with me at times, and alot lately. The part about the kind words also reminds me about the two edged sword. I know words are very powerful, good and bad. So better to use kind words than to be unkind. Be uplifting, dont tear down.
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