“A gentle answer turns away wrath. But harsh words make tempers flare.” Proverbs 15:1
Play Episode on iTunes & Stitcher
Standing in the hallway of the hotel where we were hosting our mom’s conference, I noticed a sweet mama who looked as though she was at the end of her rope. Holding a young baby, who was arching his little back and crying as though his heart would break, she looked beside herself.
I offered to hold her little one so she could get some rest. Sure enough, he would begin to quiet and then something, probably a little gurgly tummy, would cause him to begin to wail once again. I held him close, cheek to cheek, his to mine, with my mouth aimed toward his little ear.
Softly I began to talk to him and then sing the song so often sung to my children: “You are my sunshine, my only sunshine,” very softly, very gently. He would quiet down. Then another cry would begin, and I would talk to him very softly again … “You are not alone. You are so very precious, you are a darling boy,” lyrically, holding his soft cheek so he could feel mine. Each time my voice started, his little eyes got big and he would quiet.
After several minutes of this repeating, he fell fast asleep.
When my children were young, if I wrapped my demeanor, by my will, in softness and gentleness and answered their anger in a gentle voice, with non-accusing eyes, they were more likely than not to listen to me and to respond.
They still are!
“I understand you are feeling frustrated or angry, but I want to listen to you and understand what you are saying so I can help you.”
Angry words answered with loud voices and accusation just adds fuel to the flame of anger. Gentleness and sympathy puts water on the fire of a loved one’s angry heart, soothing their frustrated feelings.. Once I had this scripture in my head and learned to use it in many relationship situations, I saw how effective this piece of wisdom was. All of us desire, even in our frustration, to be honored.
There is no absolute solution or formula to calming every angry quarrel. Yet, wisdom from Proverbs has often saved the moment for my family. A hormonal teen, an exhausted toddler, an exasperated school-aged child, or a husband who is angry—all of these long to be treated with focused attention, an understanding heart, and a loving response.
As we all know, it is natural to react in like—anger to anger. However, it is the Spirit of Him who is love that leads us to react in love. As the Spirit lives through us, we will see His power and fruit drawing others to Him through us, when we choose to remember bits of truth he has left for us to follow. A gentle answer turns away anger.
Gentleness grows stronger with practice. It comes with humility. It grows as wisdom and takes root in the heart that values the ones she loves. May God grant us to become gentle in our love, that others may see Him through us.
Printable:
Books Referenced in this Podcast:
My favorite gifts to give each year are books. If you want to encourage a friend for the whole year, consider getting Mom Heart Moments as a gift that will keep on giving. And to delight a child in your life, I think you would be so happy to give them a proper sense of how precious they are just as they are with the book, Only You Can Be You!
FOR MORE
Subscribe to this podcast on iTunes, Stitcher, or your favorite podcast app.
Leave an iTunes Review These are so important as they help our podcast reach more women with messages of encouragement.
Follow on Facebook and Instagram for the latest news and updates.
Share with others. My prayer is that this podcast brings encouragement to women and families, and I would be honored for you to tell others about it.
Join my friends and me in membership at Life with Sally, a place for me to share more teaching from the Bible and messages on education, motherhood, discipleship, and more!
