“Be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to grow angry”

March 19, 2022 No. 7
Putting into practice the counsel from the half-brother of Jesus (James) recorded in the book of the Bible titled after him, James 1:19-21, to me looms heavy given the current happenings in our country and the world today. “Know this, my dear brothers and sisters: everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to grow angry” (James 1:19 NIV).
I especially like the way James begins the writing— “Know this…” James doesn’t hesitate a bit. He is sure of what he is saying. Another thing, he does not eliminate anyone, either. He writes, “Everyone should…” No one draws a bye in this regard.
I think it’s safe to assume that society today seems to be conducting themselves in the direct opposite of James’s directive. “Be quick to listen.” I admit that I too often am NOT “quick to listen,” but instead, I am quick to speak, only to realize that had I listened more carefully I could have saved all involved a great deal of difficulty. In today’s world, observing the interaction of the players in society, it could be said that too many people seem to want to engage in verbal showdowns, similar to the “quick-draw experts” of the Old Wild West. Who can be “the fastest [verbal] draw”?
But James cautions and directs us, “Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to grow angry” (James 1:19 NIV). How wonderful it would be if we would try to outdo one another in an “effective listening contest.” I would be ecstatic if I could have a title listed after my name, “E.L. (Effective Listener).” I bet I could make a ton of money if I were able to be contracted out to business, social, and religious groups to sit in on their meetings just to recap and “translate” the goings-on in their meetings.
“And slow to grow angry” wraps up James’s message. A word that I have developed a major admiration for over the past decade or so—GRACE. In my book I developed an entire section and then some with respect to this word. “Probably the thing most needed and least activated in all qualities of life in the world today is a small, five-letter word: grace. Every human being needs grace, but so little of it finds its way into the human experience” (“Being in Step with God”). Substituting grace in the place of anger would alter the landscape of humanity in such a marvelous way! WOW! What an impact that would have on our world.
So, let’s all attempt to model James’s commission, “Know this, my dear brothers and sisters: everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to grow angry” (James 1:19 NIV). Let us accept James’s challenge. God bless…