Sowing and Reaping

When I am talking to people, I get the feeling a lot of the time people do not believe what I am saying. One of the reasons why I get this impression is because of the response that I get from them after making a statement. People don’t usually come out blatantly and say, “You’re lying,” “You’re exaggerating,” or “You don’t understand.” People “tell” me that I don’t know what I’m talking about in a round about way, usually by giving me an alternate viewpoint or by sharing with me their experiences in life. When this happens, I get frustrated; I get myself all worked up and want to “defend” or further explain what I have said.

This morning I had a flashback. When I was a kid, I often tried to convince people of something, even to the point of tears. People used to believe me, until they found out I was lying (and I used to lie a lot). Eventually, people took what I said with a grain—no, it was probably more like a box of salt. So maybe this is payback time. Maybe I am reaping what I have sowed as a kid even though I am not bent in this direction anymore. If this is true, it stinks.

This morning I am also reminded that Jesus’ underlying message was “believe Me” (John 8:45-46) or “trust Me” (John 14:1, Matthew 7:24-27), but His message was continually rejected (John 1:14). I’ve noticed that every time Jesus was rejected, His response was not like mine. Jesus does not grab people by their shoulders, shake them, and scream, “Believe Me!” I also don’t see Jesus dropping to His knees pleading with people, “Why won’t you listen to Me?” Nor does Jesus follow people around, bombarding them with a multitude of words to convince them of His truthfulness. No, I am not like Jesus.

Maybe I should consider limiting my speech and be content with short answers like, “Yes” or “No” (Matthew 5:37). Maybe I should allow God the opportunity to have the final word instead of me. This is so hard, but if I remember correctly, the last time I looked, words like badgering, overbearing, and argumentative were not listed under the “Fruit of the Spirit” (Galatians 5:22-23). Perhaps, just perhaps this would be a good time for me to practice sowing seeds of godliness.