Proverbs 15:1-2 “A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger. The tongue of the wise useth knowledge aright: but the mouth of fools poureth out foolishness.”
The pace of life we live in has gotten faster because of technology. We have all but eliminated the opportunity for us to think about, meditate, or even contemplate and process the information we take in. It affects our daily interactions on all levels.
Take a look around when you go to the store, to the gas pump, or the restaurant. People have a screen in front of their face and are scrolling through pages and pages of entertainment, amusement, information, videos, pictures, and more. We fail to interact, and it is taking its toll on all our relationships.
Pretty soon, we look up and wonder who it is sitting across from me. We try to converse and find it difficult and hard to navigate. The skills we need to journey through a problem properly are dormant, rusty, or out of reach.
The escalation of volume, tension, and anger in a conversation can easily turn an exchange of words into a battleground. If you love someone, you’ve entered this arena more times than you care, and want to avoid it because the fallout from not handling it properly, can be hurtful and devastating.
As a child of God, our Father gives us the wisdom to handle every situation and circumstance – IF we utilize the principles He sets forth in His Word.
The soft answer we give in response to a conversation on its way to escalation can do two things.
One, it will slow the train to a major blowout by lowering the elements that escalate the exchange.
Two, it calms my soul, spirit, and anger.
So often, I will disengage faster when I answer someone’s anger softly. When others see that you are not stepping onto the battlefield, they will either escalate their anger or look for someone else with whom to engage.
Simple truth. Harder to employ. We need God to control our soul, our spirit, and our tongue. May God help us, His children, to give that soft answer every necessary time to show ourselves faithful.
Daily Manna 