Day 19 - The Rude Tongue

Rude - discourteous, impolite, lacking culture or refinement, crude in behavior, uncouth, ungentle or harsh.

I think we would all agree that this is one of the most recognizable wrong uses of our tongue. We have all experienced the rude driver, impolite store clerk, harsh customer, inconsiderate family member. Let us not forget those cell phones and how inconsiderate they seem to make people.
Do we see these traits so easily in others because we know how quickly we can resort to this if we are out of sorts?
I learned the H.A.L.T. acronym as I was changing my lifestyle to eat better. I was reminded to check if I was starting to make bad choices, am I hungry, angry, lonely or tired? Sometimes it might bode us well to ask these questions when our attitude turns sour.
Deborah Pegues reminds us in this chapter about the Golden Rule which is in God's Word.
Luke 6:31 ' Do to others as you would have them do to you.'
Seems simple doesn't it, we all know how we would like to be treated. As our world becomes busier and everything is quick and instant, we are starting to expect that everywhere and the temptation to be rude and impatient grows. We need to guard our hearts and put boundaries around our time so we are better equipped to stand against our selfishness that creates rudeness.
I remembered a story this morning I once heard about a man who got on a crowded bus with his three children. He sat down and his kids were running wild up and down the aisle. He seemed oblivious to their actions and the people grumbling. Finally one lady had had enough and she tried to get his attention. 'Sir, sir!'
He slowly turned to her as she berated him to get his children under control. ' I am so sorry, we just came from the hospital where their mom, my wife just died.'
A lot of times we make quick judgments before we know the story behind a behavior. You can bet those people on the bus had an instant attitude adjustment.
Instead of responding in kind to someone rude today, can we give out God's love. Smile, ask a question, have empathy.
If you have to literally bite your tongue from being rude to someone, it will pay off in the long run. Do the opposite and be kind. It is through our kindness that God can love people.
Speaking the Truth
Hosea 11:4 ' I led them with cords of human kindness, with ties of love, I lifted the yoke from their neck and bent down to feed them.'
1 Corinthians 13:4,5 'Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.'

Excerpted from 30 Days to Taming Your Tongue by Deborah Smith Pegues (Harvest House Publishers 2005). Autographed copy of the book and workbook available at www.confrontingissues.com