In this day of social media when we can read every comment on every article, it is pretty obvious that most people have never read this verse. Many of the words written in response to someone’s opinion, political views, or religion are destructive. And destructive words breed more destructive words.

I try to avoid them, but occasionally I get sucked into a comment thread. One of the things I notice is that people do not appear to be willing to listen and learn from those with whom they disagree. They just want to call them names. But Paul warns Timothy, “in the sight of God” (must be serious!!), NOT to engage in battles over words. One way we do this is to be listeners and learners rather than claiming, “I am right and you are wrong.” We should listen to each other and learn from each other. We don’t need to compromise our beliefs, but we do need to be respectful listeners and learners.

By Ann Whitfield Carter from D365