Have you ever talked to someone who has bad breath from eating onions or garlic? I'm not just talking about "hey I had a sandwich" kind of smell, but that "I ate two Walla Walla sweets in the car while I was waiting" kind of smell. This is what I wonder about those people-
1. Do they know their breath smells like death?
2. Do they want someone to tell them?
My personal answer, that I will tell you all, is if my breath is currently in a state of disrepair, I probably don't know, and yes, I would appreciate someone telling me. If anyone ever offers me a mint or a piece of gum, I never turn it down. Never.
I wish it were that way with the other glaring flaws that we all have. I always wonder if people recognize their shortcomings. I'm sure I have some, I think I'm aware of them. I know my mouth gets me in trouble, because I speak before I think. I know I am impatient. I know that I don't do well with people who have hurt my feelings. I struggle at times with follow-through. I know these things. I work on them. I have a lot more, but that's just a few.
Its a challenge to find a way to talk to a person about their noticeable faults. People get defensive and upset when faced with the reality of who they are and areas that they need to improve. Its not really our job to go around and make people look in the mirror, but to love them for who they are, no matter how hard it may be. But sometimes, people have faults that are so offensive that you wonder if they even know, or want someone to tell them.
For me, I don't want to live the rest of my life with a character flaw that annoys everyone who knows me. As painful as it may be to hear, I want to grow. (please dont let me know via the comments on this blog)
Here's the nugget for today- Proverbs 19:20 Listen to advice and accept instruction, and in the end you will be wise.
What does that mean? It means that sometimes there will be people in your life that want to tell you something that you may not want to hear, that in the end, may be thing that you most need to hear. Don't be afraid of instruction. Don't be afraid of encouragement. Be open to someone else helping you to be a better person.
Be blessed
matt
personally i have no flaws-except every once in a while my breath smells like ketchup... :) I'm the same way-if somethings up and i dont seem to notice it, please tell me!! Love you bro! diesel
ReplyDeleteIt is like today the house down the street was take a tree down and the cars would not stop. When they were finally going to drop it this car really did not want to stop. They said go ahead if you want a tree on your car. They backed up and waited. They really did not want to know there breath smelled bad. But they did say they new more about taken a tree down then them but would not help for free. T
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