SlowToSpeak | Kristi's Morning Devotional

Oh my goodness – today we turn the page on the calendar to a new month. This year is half over, will the next six months go as quickly as these have?

My heart’s prayer is to have every day be one of purpose, filled with compassion and direction.

The words that came to my mind are from the book of James:

“My dear friends, you should be quick to listen and slow to speak or to get angry. ²⁰If you are angry, you cannot do any of the good things God wants done.” James 1:19-20 CEV

Listen more, speak less and don’t get angry! “Lord, that’s a big assignment.”

I read systematically from Psalms each day. I find such practical instruction there. This morning I read from chapter 37. Look here at what the Lord has to say:

“Don’t be annoyed by anyone
who does wrong,
and don’t envy them.
²They will soon disappear
like grass without rain.

³Trust the Lord and live right!
The land will be yours,
and you will be safe.
⁴Do what the Lord wants,
and he will give you
your heart’s desire.

⁵Let the Lord lead you
and trust him to help.
⁶Then it will be as clear
as the noonday sun
that you were right.

⁷Be patient and trust the Lord.
    Don’t let it bother you
when all goes well for those
    who do sinful things.
⁸Don’t be angry or furious.
    Anger can lead to sin.
⁹All sinners will disappear,
but if you trust the Lord,
    the land will be yours.” Psalm 37:1-9 CEV

There’s more to this chapter, another 31 verses to be exact. The theme of the whole chapter is trusting the Lord and following His lead.

Do you see how well this ties in with the verses from James?

Quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to get angry. Don’t be annoyed, don’t be bothered, don’t get angry. Trust the Lord and follow HIS lead!

Follow His lead. He has given us written instruction and He promises to walk with us each day.

“The Lord will hold your hand, and if you stumble, you still won’t fall.” Psalm 37:24 CEV

Christ is our example; we should keep our focus on Him. Don’t be annoyed by anyone who does wrong – Trust in the Lord. That instruction will serve us well as we continue through the second half of the year.

I have to admit that I have trouble with words. No, not in writing them but in condensing them.

I don’t like texting. I’m slow at it and in trying to be as brief as possible I believe I lose the full meaning and/or the depth of conviction and emotion. But brevity isn’t just a new issue to me.

I remember as a child my mother and dad making “long distance” calls on Sundays when the rates were lower. My mom would talk with Grama but hardly ever did their conversations extend past the ten-minute limit they had set for themselves. For those of you who are younger and don’t understand, there was a time before unlimited calling plans, and we were charged by the minute for non-local calls.

Then in college when I lived in the dorm there was one phone for the 24 women on our floor. All the calls had to go through the switchboard and the operator would cut in to tell us we were talking too long and needed to hang up. Oh yeah, it was a thing.

Even now, as I’m writing this, I keep checking my word count. I try to consistently stay between 500-550 words. When I first started writing the morning blogs, I thought nothing of using 900-1000 words for the morning messages. But I’ve learned that many of you don’t have the luxury of a long-read time and need to be out the door, so I’ve condensed my teachings.

So, where is all this going? It ties in with the Scripture that spoke to my heart this morning. Sometimes, we don’t need to read a lot in the Bible to get your direction for the day. God is able to touch our hearts with just a verse or two.

“My being safe and my honor rest with God. My safe place is in God, the rock of my strength. ⁸Trust in Him at all times, O people. Pour out your heart before Him. God is a safe place for us.” Psalm 62:7-8 NLV

Our heavenly Father isn’t concerned with us using too many words when we pour out our heart to Him. He listens carefully; He even gives us time to vent but He also wants us to take time to listen to His wisdom and instruction.

Listening is an art and the masterpiece it produces is relationship. It’s more than just words.

To develop a friendship or a love relationship we need to learn to listen. We have to get passed the social media limitations of 144 words and truly listen. Listen without interruption as someone begins to pour out their heart.

“My Christian brothers, you know everyone should listen much and speak little. He should be slow to become angry.” James 1:19 NLV

I like that phrase “listen much”. The impact we make in life is less about our words and more about our actions. If we want someone to know we care, we need to be a good listener.

Caring starts with listening, it’s more than just words.

Tag: SlowToSpeak

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