“A gentle answer turns away wrath,
Proverbs 15:1 NIV
but a harsh word stirs up anger.”
Thanks again for joining me. It’s encouraging to know that I’m not the only one getting somethings out of the Proverbs this month.
I think the sheer relatability of the wisdom contained in Proverbs is why I like it so much. Even if its historical setting is ancient to us, it is extremely applicable. Today’s passage reminds me some of the training I had when I was becoming a foster parent.
Little kids will either defy you or throw a fit when you sternly correctly. A foster parent I was learning from would always encourage her little children “let’s be sweet.” And she would highlight the behavior of that “sweetness”. Being kind, not pushing or especially not biting. “that’s not being sweet…”
As we’ve grown and so have our girls. And we’ve tried to not fly off the handle and yell when correcting them. The poor choice they made has consequences but all I’m doing is tearing apart our relationship when I’m adding a new consequence: making dad “Hulk out.”
They problem with reacting emotionally and in anger to problems before you is it usually begets more anger, causing more problems. We can see this in parenting, but also in interpersonal relationships between adults.
We you yelled at or were you calmly talked to when being corrected? How did that approach make you feel? Let me know it the comments.
Viroqua Naz 