Sometimes we get tongue tied when people answer with something more honest than "Fine" when we ask "How are you?" Or maybe people who have been consistently kind to us experience a really tough time, like having a child arrested or a bankruptcy or a divorce....you know, the kinds of thing where a casserole just doesn't seem to be the answer and Hallmark doesn't really go there.
So, too often we avoid these folks because we don't know what to say.
Sometimes the more challenging the situation, the more people need a moment of kindness. It might be something like a note that says "I'm sorry. Call me if you need to talk. Or will you let me take you to lunch?" Maybe it means listening without judgement or offering to pray together. Maybe it means offering to be present with the person at a hearing or leaving a bag of groceries or inviting someone to a quiet dinner at home.
But, we think, what if I can't think of the right thing to say? So God has an answer for that. When God sent Moses to speak to the Pharaoh, Moses explained that he had "a slow mouth and a thick tongue". God does not dispute that, instead God says this: “Who gives people the ability to speak? Who’s responsible for making them unable to speak or hard of hearing, sighted or blind? Isn’t it I, the Lord? Now go! I’ll help you speak, and I’ll teach you what you should say.” (Exodus 4:10-12)
So be courageous! Reach out. Maybe all you need to do is say "I'm so sorry this has happened!" and just be with the sorrowing person. And if God thinks there is something you can speak that will add to the situation, the words will show up just in time.
So, too often we avoid these folks because we don't know what to say.
Sometimes the more challenging the situation, the more people need a moment of kindness. It might be something like a note that says "I'm sorry. Call me if you need to talk. Or will you let me take you to lunch?" Maybe it means listening without judgement or offering to pray together. Maybe it means offering to be present with the person at a hearing or leaving a bag of groceries or inviting someone to a quiet dinner at home.
But, we think, what if I can't think of the right thing to say? So God has an answer for that. When God sent Moses to speak to the Pharaoh, Moses explained that he had "a slow mouth and a thick tongue". God does not dispute that, instead God says this: “Who gives people the ability to speak? Who’s responsible for making them unable to speak or hard of hearing, sighted or blind? Isn’t it I, the Lord? Now go! I’ll help you speak, and I’ll teach you what you should say.” (Exodus 4:10-12)
So be courageous! Reach out. Maybe all you need to do is say "I'm so sorry this has happened!" and just be with the sorrowing person. And if God thinks there is something you can speak that will add to the situation, the words will show up just in time.
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