"So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath; for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God." (James 1:19-20)
The Bible is clear in regards to how we should respond to anything that comes our way, especially when we're angry. James 1:19-20 gives us clear instruction and warning that are both easy to understand.
Oftentimes, however, many of us will agree that it's not as easy to do as it is easy to read it.
James instructs all of us to be quick to listen, to be slow to speak in uttering words we might regret, and even slower to get mad at what's happening. This is because our anger does not automatically produce what pleases God, even if we've been Christians for a long time.
We may not want to admit it, but we're all stubborn. We don't do as we're told. And like I said, we may deny this and say that we're obedient to God's Word, but we're actually not as obedient as we think.
In this article we'll take a quick look at some ways we disobey James 1:19. These methods are common, yet many of us don't even realize we're doing them.
1) We don't hear all sides of the story
Many of us quickly jump to conclusions without trying to hear all sides of the story. We formulate our own opinions before we try to reach out to those we need to talk to and listen to.
Suppose we have a close and trusted friend come over to us and tell us something about someone. Since we trust this friend, it is likely that we ask their opinion and then eventually form our own even without asking that other person's side of the story.
This happens all the time, even in Christian circles.
2) We quickly complain or grumble about something
As mentioned above, many of us form our opinions without hearing the other side of the story.
Some of us aren't content with just forming opinions; we actually air them out.
Many of us will argue, "I'm not gossiping." That may be true, but that's not what we're looking at. We're looking at those who quickly release a careless word about something they see, hear, or feel, even without properly understanding it.
Many of us quickly complain without knowing what's happening. We grumble as we line up at the grocery store, failing to understand that there's a very old lady walking slowly towards the cashier.
We complain about traffic, not understanding that someone crashed into another car and needed to be taken to the hospital.
We complain about how the waiters take too long to serve our food, not realizing that the fast food chain's understaffed at the moment.
We need to listen more and be more concerned about others.
3) We are quick to hold grudges sometimes
Some of us are quick to hold grudges against people. We're quick to treat others with contempt, and quick to label them according to how unlikeable as we perceive them to be. At times, we're quick to hold on to the offenses that others make, even if they did so unintentionally.
We should stop doing that.
It's wrong to breed bitterness in our hearts. It's wrong to culture prejudice in our minds. It's wrong to cultivate unfair bias in our hearts and minds towards others.
We must be quick to forgive, quick to release the offenses, and quick to make peace.
