Posts tagged “Gentleness”
Evidence of the Spirit: Kindness
It’s not so hard to be nice to the nice. It’s not so hard to dish back at people who give you guff. It’s…
SLOPPY!
My light almost went out in first grade. For some reason, I never went to kindergarten. If you read Robert Fulghum’s poem “All I…
Shut your mouth, holy man (or woman)!
I sort of wish I had someone there to stop me every time I start saying something unkind or unnecessary or in a scathing…
Being human
When my youngest daughter was born, she came out crying. The doctor said, “It’s a girl!” but my daughter just cried at the sound…
Be That Friend
If, by God’s grace, you aren’t the one in three or four who have experienced abuse, you might not know what to do to…
More roots, more fruit
The other day I read an article called “Tree Roots: Facts & Fallacies.” (Sounds interesting, I know.) The author wrote, “If a large portion…
Abusive talk
One of my children patiently explained to me once why he would ridicule and belittle his younger sibling. “Dad,” he said, “I’m just getting…
Stop a quarrel before it starts
I bet you know how to accelerate a disagreement into a full-blown fight. I bet you know the buttons that you can push on…
My temper
I can sure tell when other people are losing their tempers. I hear the pitch of their voices rise. I note the sharpness of…
Trash mouth
Think back to your younger years. Where did you learn the meaning of “street” words, i.e., cussing, swearing, body parts? Probably from your (slightly…
Get Close to Difficult People?
When it comes to dealing with difficult people, it’s natural to think we need to keep our distance. But Pastor Matt says that’s not the healthiest way to address difficult people.
Stop saying, “It’s okay,” because it’s not okay
About 13 years ago, when I was interning at a church, my boss/pastor said that we would not just preach about forgiveness; we would…