Read
14A loud greeting
early in the morning
is the same as a curse.
15The steady dripping of rain
and the nagging of a wife
are one and the same.
16It's easier to catch the wind
or hold olive oil in your hand
than to stop a nagging wife.
Reflect
Current studies in both management and leadership highlight the critical role of developing good relations with those around us. The Wise Man speaks of core areas of life that demand the continued development and cultivation of good relations, namely relations with people very near us.
Getting along with those in close proximity can be quite tricky because some small things that we do, sometimes with the best intentions, may be delivered in a clumsy way and then be taken in the exact opposite way they were intended.
At, say, five in the morning while it is still dark, you walk out to your car to drive to the commuter train station and you see your neighbor coming out of his house with perhaps his robe wrapped around him to pick up the morning paper, barely awake, and you, with good intentions, shout “Good Morning.” Your cheery greeting is intended as a blessing. But, it is just too early for him, it jars him and he barely hides a scowl. So speak softly when you bless, let your blessing fit the moment, and let it be like a small beam of the rising sun rather than a blinding blast of noontime, a true blessing and not a curse.
Marriage even more requires the most delicate of touches, and when either a husband or a wife decides that the way to get things to happen around the house is to constantly mention them in a hurt, angry or quarrelsome manner, life loses its radiance, and soon the object of the drip, drip of complaint responds by giving even more reasons for complaint, perhaps with the ulterior motive of creating a justification for moving on to another home, another relationship.
The wisdom of Christ is simply this: don’t harm others with your blessing, don’t drag down people you love with your griping. Look in the mirror and ask, How would I wish the people who are close in proximity to me to treat me? Then, do to these others as you would wish them to do to you.
Respond
Lord Jesus you blessed people as you walked among us and your blessings encouraged growth and faith. Today may my compliments and kind words touch people with your kindness and encourage them to look beyond the moment to eternity.
Franklin Pyles
Franklin Pyles was a pastor of churches that served inner city neighborhoods, taught theology at Canadian Theological Seminary, and then was a pastor in a medium sized Ontario city. He then served his denomination, The Christian & Missionary Alliance as President for the full time allotted. He has written on C.S. Lewis and on a variety of ministry and church concerns. He continues a preaching and teaching ministry, currently at McMaster Divinity College. Publications: Most electronic and in house for the Alliance.