Thursday, October 8, 2009

When will you end these speeches?

I have been going through the book of Job for the first time in its entirety and it is quite the eye opener. I won't get onto my full thoughts just yet because I haven't finished it but I ran across something I found very interesting.

Job is going through a really rough time and God is basically letting him go through all of this because he believes in Job to have the right attitude and pull through it. Tragedy happens to his family and he continues to praise the Lord. It is not until things happen directly to him that he begins to gripe. And boy does he know how to gripe. He does this chapter after chapter, complaining to his friends and to God about what He has allowed to happen to him.

In chapter 18, Bildad,one of Job's friends, says something very interesting and basic to him: "When will you end these speeches?" In other words, when will you stop complaining and just keep your mouth shut? Job goes on and on and has the woe is me thing going perfectly. He is blasting off at the mouth about everything and to anyone who will listen. Even after Bildad says this to Job he is right back at it in the next chapter. He doesn't get it because he is so consumed in what is going on in his life.

When will we (I) end these speeches? Sometimes something will perturb me enough that I will quickly inherit diarrhea of the mouth and start going off. Some of that is from growing up in New England, but most of it is just my tendency to want to get everything off my chest after holding it in for so long.

Choose your words carefully and, if you feel like going off, take a second to realize who is around you and if it is really necessary to get your point across in that way. I am writing this so I will one day come back and read this and take my own advice. This truly is not aimed at anyone but me.

Now I'm just rambling. Seacrest, out.

-- Posted from my iPhone