Scripture
“Don’t bother about his letters,” some say, “He sounds big, but it’s all noise. When he gets here you will see that there is nothing great about him, and you have never heard a worse preacher!”
~II Corinthians 10:10, LNT
Quote
“Criticism is something we can avoid easily by saying nothing, doing nothing, and being nothing.”
~Elbert Hubbard
As we pointed out yesterday, all humans suffer from anxiety at one time or another. I don’t think Jesus was afraid of anything but He did dread the cross and that created some form of anxiety. I do think Jesus is an exception but other than Him, all men or subject to getting their feelings hurt. The person who says, “You can’t hurt my feelings,” is lying to himself and you. No one is completely dead to self. This is our goal but none of us are there. If you read II Corinthians 10-12 in any modern translation, you are bound to pick up on what is happening between Paul and the Church at Corinth. Although Paul founded the church, they loved Peter and Apollos and some of the other traveling preachers more than they did Paul and they were quite vocal with their opinions. When you tell your pastor or father in the faith that he is worse preacher you’ve ever heard, it is not going to make him feel good. Paul was a very proud little Jew and he would never admit what is going on, but he is hurt and you can see it when you read these chapters. He is so hurt that he goes to great length to defend himself which is always a mistake. When we defend ourselves, we don’t get more sympathy, we get less.
I will admit that this world has gone nuts when it comes to ‘sensitivity’. Paige Patterson is under fire for telling a story in the pulpit about counseling a woman to stay with an abusive husband. Practically all the old timers gave this type of counsel. Someone told me last night that they do not throw the rolls at Lambert’s anymore. They can toss them underhanded if they are near you but can’t throw the fast ball over handed across the room anymore because some one missed their roll and it hit them in the face. I think they sued the restaurant. You better be real careful with the opposite sex at the work place; it will not be long before the wink of an eye will be sexual harassment. I was taught by my mother that a gentlemen opens the door for a lady. It’s getting to the point that I am afraid to open a door for a woman, these feminazis might sue you for harassment and they might win.
Seriously, hurtful words do injure hearts. The Corinthians were brutal in their comments about Paul and their stinging criticism hurt him. Of all the churches Paul founded and served, the Corinthian church never paid him a dime. The tiny congregation at Philippi supported Paul while he was at Corinth. Paul vowed never to take a dime from Corinth. What is wrong with this? Folks, love gives. Matter of fact, you can’t stop love from giving. Deep down, Paul knew he was in a one-sided relationship with Corinth: he loved them but they did not love and appreciate him. These one-sided relationships are hard for humans to bear. We all crave love and appreciation. So although Paul never comes right out and admits it, they hurt his feeling badly.
I’m not a malicious person. I don’t get up in the morning thinking about who I can hurt. My problem is carelessness and a lack of wisdom. I may be a little too opinionated and I am quick to let you know how I feel. Sometimes I feel ready bad about the dumb things I say but there are other times when I think people are hypersensitive. As Jason says, “They need to grow a little skin,” and I need to be a little more sensitive.
- LORD willing, Big Mama and I will be leaving for Jackson, Mississippi tonight and we plan to attend the COLS of Sarah Mills in Forest tomorrow. We moved our trip up a few days due to Sarah untimely departure. Sarah was a Sessums and we have been friends with that family for 45 years. I was her Mom and Dad’s pastor for 18 months while we were in Seminary.
- This means our VBS is sewed up for 2018. Big Mama and I are tired. After delivering all the grands, it was almost 10:00 before we got home. We are too old to burn the candle on both ends.
- PTL, we got the DIGEST to Alabama Mail yesterday, so that is one monkey off our back. We are now looking forward to FATHER’S DAY.