Proverbs 19:11
A man's wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense.
Proverbs 14:29
A patient man has great understanding, but a quick-tempered man displays folly.
Proverbs 14:16 -17
A wise man fears the LORD and shuns evil, but a fool is hotheaded and reckless. A quick-tempered man does foolish things, and a crafty man is hated.
Nothing displays foolishness like a quick tempered person. As a boy I was told to stand up for myself and not to let anyone take advantage of me. It led to quick arguments and a few fights, but at least I had my honor. I wanted people to think highly of me, to respect me. But the wise man and the patient man do not get their sense of worth and value from other people. The wise person is more concerned about what God thinks of him rather than what others think. The wise person can overlook an offense and patiently deal with others, knowing that his or her identity is in the hand of God, not other people. It is our glory to overlook an offense, and not to get stuck in foolish anger.
My temper is (and always has been) my achilles heal. Just last night i had an incident where i honked at an older driver who had been at a stop sign for what seemed like an eternity with a wide open road in all directions. My wife tells me it was 15-20 seconds. Well the individual hesitated then proceeded to pull out into now oncoming traffic. Luckily they weren't hurt and i could probably defend what i did (we were late to my son's scout meeting afterall) but in the end, another stupid knee jerk reaction and poor witness.
ReplyDeletesounds good on paper, looking over an offense though? tough teaching. what about personal justice? or corporate? seems to me to take a lot of trust in God to overlook an offense and more natural to keep a record of wrongs.
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