I am mostly talking to myself today.
It is a good habit to make a point to give people complements. In every conversation that I have, I can be intentional about complementing this person. The more I practice this, the more it will become natural.
The other day, I made everyone pay two different people complements before they left the devotional. After doing this, I found myself being sarcastic with one of the students. She then told me that no one had paid her a complement yet. In addition to this, two other people had given some sarcastic remarks as well. I was tremendously embarrassed. Here I was hoping everyone would get a complement and I am the one putting someone down with a sarcastic comment. Aaahhhh!!!
Let us be intentional about giving complements in every conversation we have with those around us.
Showing posts with label sarcasm. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sarcasm. Show all posts
Thursday, July 28, 2005
Tuesday, July 26, 2005
I'm just joking
"Yeah, Julie, you are lookin' pretty ugly today!!!" "What?!" "Oh...I'm just messin' around with ya. Don't worry about it...I'm just joking."
I find myself just joking around too often. While my sarcasm has diminished, it can get pretty bad at times...mostly with people that I begin to feel really comfortable around. There is a time for a nice little pun that knocks a close friend or a bit of sarcasm every once in a while. But, have you ever met a person who is always offering "little" put-downs here and "innocent" nuggets of sarcasm there every chance s/he gets? It seems like everything out of her or his mouth is "just a joke." Being around these type of people is not something I always look forward to.
Consider these proverbs:
"Many a truth is said in jest." - unknown
"Like a madman shooting firebrands or deadly arrows is a man who deceives his neighbor and says, 'I was only joking!'" - Proverbs 26:18-19
"The tongue that brings healing is a tree of life, but a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit." - Proverbs 15:4
"A man finds joy in giving an apt reply--and how good is a timely word!" - Proverbs 15:23
"A word aptly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver." - Proverbs 25:11
This is the lesson: I must think before I make a joke that could work against the edifying that I am called to do as a Christian.
I find myself just joking around too often. While my sarcasm has diminished, it can get pretty bad at times...mostly with people that I begin to feel really comfortable around. There is a time for a nice little pun that knocks a close friend or a bit of sarcasm every once in a while. But, have you ever met a person who is always offering "little" put-downs here and "innocent" nuggets of sarcasm there every chance s/he gets? It seems like everything out of her or his mouth is "just a joke." Being around these type of people is not something I always look forward to.
Consider these proverbs:
"Many a truth is said in jest." - unknown
"Like a madman shooting firebrands or deadly arrows is a man who deceives his neighbor and says, 'I was only joking!'" - Proverbs 26:18-19
"The tongue that brings healing is a tree of life, but a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit." - Proverbs 15:4
"A man finds joy in giving an apt reply--and how good is a timely word!" - Proverbs 15:23
"A word aptly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver." - Proverbs 25:11
This is the lesson: I must think before I make a joke that could work against the edifying that I am called to do as a Christian.
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