Pastor Jim Jackson
Richmond Hill Presbyterian Church
Enjoying lunch at a restaurant not long ago, I overheard a grandmother quoting her grandson. The young man was apparently trying to explain himself to some adults.
His question: “How can I know what I think until I’ve had a chance to hear what I’ve got to say?”
It strikes us as humorous to hear a child talk like that, simply because we assume that the proper order of things should be otherwise. Thinking should precede talking.
Isn’t that the way it should be? Sure, it is ideal for us to know that our brain is in gear before we engage the tongue. But that’s too rare, even among adults.
Articulation before contemplation gets us in trouble most often when it comes to verbalized thought about other people. Our speaking gets ahead of our thinking, and we say words that harm others and embarrass ourselves. We may wish to take the words back, but that’s as hopeless as capturing the wind. So even though we do the foolish thing articulated by the child, we laugh at his words. It is funny hear a child say that; yet, in most cases, it is sad when adults practice it.
There is one important exception coming to my mind. Sometimes it is helpful in forming an opinion or reaching a conclusion for us to talk ahead of our thinking.
Small children may do that almost anywhere, but not adults. And that must be one of the reasons why God gives us friends.
I heard someone say that a friend is a person who comes in when the world goes out.
Yes, and a friend is someone who will allow us to say anything in his or her presence without passing judgment on us. In so doing, they help his enter the larger world with words that are accurate, responsible, and kind, words that are worthy of adults and words that are worth hearing.
The Apostle Peter is a classic example of one who spoke too often before thinking.
You will remember how he promised our Lord that he would never deny him, yet he did. If he had only thought about it.
The writer of the the epistle of James got it right when he asked and then answered the question: “Who is a wise man endued with knowledge among you? let him show out of a good conversation his works with meekness and wisdom.”