Ready:
“Love one another deeply as brothers and sisters. Take the lead in honoring one another.” —Римлян 12:10
Set:
At a recent volleyball game, I watched from the bleachers as the referees walked onto the court. The home team coach welcomed them, and it soon became clear that he knew the first referee by the way they interacted. He was playful, yet kind and respectful. There was a moment before the game began where the girls were huddled up in prayer and the ref loudly said in an annoyed tone, “Alright, let’s go.” The coach looked at him and said, “Come on baby, they’re prayin.” The ref looked at him and said “I know. It’s time to start.” Clearly, they had two separate views, but the way the coach handled it was so encouraging.
Приповісті 15:1 says, “A gentle answer turns away anger, but a harsh word stirs up wrath.” How easily could that moment with the ref have turned sour and wrath be stirred up for the rest of the game? The wrath wouldn’t have just been between the coach and the ref, the whole team would’ve suffered. Instead, the coach took the lead in honoring his girls in their time of prayer as well as the ref in his position on the court — everybody won.
Many people walk around waiting to be offended so they can blow up in wrath, but this coach chose to be unoffendable. It’s important to remember where his motivation came from: love. He had great love for his team and for the seasoned ref.
The coach has no clue how much that three second interaction spoke to me. Instead of looking for an opportunity to be offended, he chose to do what Paul commands the Romans. He loved and honored the ref and his team.
We would all do well to do the same. Love instead of offense and wrath. A gentle answer and respect instead of blowing up.
Go:
Take a moment to discern how offendable you are. What are some steps you can take to be more loving and quick to offer a gentle answer instead?
How might your team, family, friend group or work environment benefit from you choosing to take the lead in showing honor?
Workout:
Overtime:
“Heavenly Father, I pray the Holy Spirit works within me to make me unoffendable. I want to take the lead in honoring others even if they might not be doing the same thing to me. I want to change the room by living as Christ would in that room. I pray Your will over my relationships and environments. I want to reflect Christ in every corner of every room I am in. Thank You for Your word as my guide. Amen.”