Spouting off before listening to the facts
is both shameful and foolish.—Proverbs 18:13 (NLT)Intelligent people are always ready to learn.
Their ears are open for knowledge.—Proverbs 18:15 (NLT)The first to speak in court sounds right—
until the cross-examination begins.—Proverbs 18:17 (NLT)
Heavenly Father,
Grant me patience, so that I will be slow to speak; humility, so I will remain ready to learn; and wisdom, so I will be able to discern the truth—in all my relationships with others.
Keep me from foolishly
standing in judgment of others, before I take the time to discover the facts—and
keep me from substituting my assumptions for the truth.
I don’t want to be that
guy who spouts off my opinions, before listening to the all the facts. I want to make sound statements of truth,
after I have listened well and understand.
I don’t want to be that
guy who is unteachable, who thinks he knows better than anyone else. In humility, I want to be eager to learn that
which I do not know.
I don’t want to be that
guy who is only interested in one side of the story. I want to remember that each person’s
experience of the same event is colored by their vantage point, and to discover
truth, I must hear all sides of the story.
Help me to courageously do
the hard work of gathering all the information I need, as I allow Your Spirit
to lead me to make sound decisions.
Grant me patience, so that I will be slow to speak; humility, so I will remain ready to learn; and wisdom, so I will be able to discern the truth—in all my relationships with others.
In the name of Jesus,
Amen.
