Get The Balance Right

Now I, Paul, appeal to you with the gentleness and kindness of Christ—though I realize you think I am timid in person and bold only when I write from far away.  Well, I am begging you now so that when I come I won’t have to be bold with those who think we act from human motives.  2 Corinthians 10:1-2

Do you ever have times where you are so wrapped up in dealing with a situation that you forget when you yourself were in that same situation?  In trying to deal with my youngest child, I manage to often find myself in that very scenario. There are times when I think of how to respond and ask myself, “How in the world can your own child respond in such a way you would never consider?”  Pondering how to address the situation and temper my response, I found myself focusing on what is the right thing to do.  Then I asked a tricky question.  If this were God and I had been the transgressor, how would He have responded?  This is where I found myself challenged.  Yes, I needed to deal with the inappropriateness of her behavior, but was I doing as God would do with me?

We often must balance our handling of situations between both the gentleness of God along with the boldness of God.  In today’s verses, we can see the delicate balance of Paul navigating this very slippery slope noting that he spoke with gentleness even as God’s word required him to write boldly.  I can totally relate to this dynamic as I too want to be empathetic to others while being true to God’s word.  The question then becomes how does one do that?  Paul goes on to give the key insight that we tend to forget, particularly when we feel the need to correct someone.  The word is ‘Teach,’ as he further said, “We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:5) This gives a bit of latitude in the delivery.  I liken it to giving feedback to people on my team.  Some need a very delicate touch where it is fairly easy to get them to correct their mistakes.  However, with others, I need to be very short and direct.  Call it hitting them on the kneecap with a baseball bat.  Yes, that sounds extreme, but some require that level of brutal honesty to get the message.  Here is the ‘teachable’ moment.  We must have a level of discernment to know we cannot use the bat when most people need a pillow!  God has hit me with a gentle nudge most times and every so often with a bat.  But each time I totally understood the why, and I’m thankful it has been a while since I got hit with the bat 😊

Being able to discern God’s love and His discipline is a crucial step in our spiritual growth.  God’s love is always at the forefront of His care for us.  As such, we too are to use this approach with others.  Galatians 5:22:23 says, “But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!”  If we act with these imbedded in our hearts, our chance to act with both love and boldness becomes far greater.  Let us focus on these fruits in all our interactions both spiritual and nonspiritual.  What conversations could you handle better?  How can you better prepare for tough conversations with the fruits of the spirit as your guide?  My prayer is that we all find God’s truth with a level of gentleness and kindness.  Amen.