Proverb 31: 8-9

“Speak up for the people who have no voice, for the rights of all the down-and-outers.

Speak out for justice!

Stand up for the poor and destitute!”

One day as I lined up in ‘Subway’ to casually grab some lunch, the man in front of me was berating the girl serving us because they had a ‘change for good’ collection tin for an overseas charity. The funny part of the story, is the organisation that he was yelling about I was a part of. I knew the leaders, I knew where the money went, I saw the changed lives.

I stood behind him listening to his rant, how all this organisation wanted was people’s money and it never went to the people they promised to and how he couldn’t believe that Subway supported them. I had a brave choice. I either let the young girl tremble under the forced opinion and bullying of an older man or I spoke up.

Soon he had his sandwich in hand and turned to walk out, I said loudly (so the rest of the line could hear) “Excuse me sir, I work for the organisation you have a problem with can we step outside and have a chat. I can answer every question you have and also dispute the lies you have just been sharing.”

Gahhh.

What a scary moment. I could have stayed anonymous. I could have let that young girl shiver.

But I didn’t.

I wasn’t aggressive. I wasn’t defensive. I asked calmly if we could chat outside.

And that we did.

Have you ever been in a situation where someone is speaking badly about someone or something you love?

Have you ever been in a situation where you don’t want to step in but you know if you don’t the moment would have passed with injustice?

A woman of wisdom does hard things.

She calls the person whom she has offended.

She speaks on behalf of those who aren’t present.

But she does it with wisdom.

She is still kind.

She is full of grace.

But she does hard things.

The only way I had the confidence and courage to approach an angry man, is because I was sure of who I was and what I stood for. A woman of wisdom continually seeks confirmation of her identity from the right things and also reaffirms what it is that she stands for. I believed deeply in the vision and values of the organisation that was being slammed but also I knew the people personally who this man was criticising.

You too can do hard things.

I know you can.

What is something that needs to be addressed in this season?

I truly believe you can do hard things…

 

 

 

Day four click here: She rises

 

Proverb Eighteen;

³ When wickedness arrives, shame’s not far behind;
    contempt for life is contemptible.

Social media and it’s online culture has been overwhelming me lately. To the point where I have considered carefully what I want to say and where I need to stay actively silent, not necessarily because I agree or disagree, but I refuse to debate in a forum that is so destructive.

Words.

They are so powerful.

The wisest women I know are measured by their words.

I am a verbal processor. I normally find my answers mid conversation or mid page of journalling. I process, I think, I debate, I discuss, I listen and I am enamoured with words.

Lately I have been learning however, the more I speak, the more I write, the more I am accountable to the weight of my words.

Whether we type them, speak them or text them, every word we form has power.

Do your words rush out like an out of control flooding river?

Or do they well up like an artisan spring filtered with layer upon layer of wisdom.

The more I see people shout from their keyboards, the more I wonder if they would say the same thing if they were seated on a platform in front of thousands. There is nothing like a crowd, a pulpit or a platform that helps us distill the depth and passion of our opinions.

How easy is it to debate online passionately, then when we see that person in flesh we shrink away with not much to say?

Kindness;

It is an ethical disposition, that asks us to place ourselves in the shoes of another before we act or speak.

What if kindness became the filter before we responded?

What if we were known by our words and how kind they were to another?

Kindness doesn’t mean we water down the truth, in fact the kindest thing we can do often is speak the truth, but filtered with wisdom.

I honestly don’t judge people by the percentage that we disagree on, but by the smaller percentage of what we do agree upon.

Proverb 31 is forming my devotional every day of July says this…

When she speaks she has something worthwhile to say, and she always says it kindly.

My goal this July, is to measure my words by this filter of wisdom.

1) Is what I am saying worthwhile?

2) Am I being kind?

If only we all stopped before we spoke, I believe the world would be a much healthier place.

 

 

 

To read Day Two click here: She Finds Focus