From the upcoming River Daily Devotional coming in June:

“It is best to listen much, speak little, and not become angry.” ~ James 1:19 TLB

Abraham Maslow said, “If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail.” Face it, because of our strong personalities some of us are inclined to use a hammer when something gentler will do. If that’s your problem, try using the following T’s :

(1) Total picture. A middle-aged man walked into a bar “Do you have anything to cure hiccups?” The bartender slapped him across the face. “Hey! what’s the idea?” said the man. The bartender smiled “Well, you don’t have hiccups any more, do you?” “I never did” the man replied. I wanted something to cure my wife, she’s out in the car.” Do you come to conclusions before the problem has been laid out before you? Slow yourself down; you’ll be more likely to respond appropriately.

(2) Timing. If the parent doesn’t get the injured child to the hospital quickly enough, her life might be lost; and if you don’t apologize when you’ve wronged someone, the relationship could be lost. When you act, is as important as taking the right action. Also knowing when not to act. Lady Dorothy Nevill observed: “The art of conversation is not only to say the right thing in the right place, but to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment.”

(3) Temperature. As tempers flare, we drop bombs when a slingshot would do. In general: (a) if the reaction is worse than the action, the problem usually increases; (b) if the reaction is less than the action, the problem usually decreases. So, be more gentle!

“A common mistake is that we tend to jump when we should be kneeling.” ~ Pastor Bob