How devastating would it be if you discovered you’d accidentally recorded a conversation with your spouse, child or neighbor that didn’t show you at your best?

How quickly would you try to delete that recording?

If you’re like most of us, you might discover things about yourself you wish weren’t true, such as how loud you get when someone disagrees with you. Or how often you cut people off when they bore you.

How much worse would you feel if the next day your pastor preached on 1 Corinthians 13?

Rude behavior runs completely contrary to what 1 Corinthians 13 teaches. 1 Corinthians 13:5 (ESV) says,

[Love is not] rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful.

Rudeness undermines our relationships at work, in our communities, in our churches – and, most often, in our homes. Just as the temperature drops when a cold front moves into our area, so does the warmth of a relationship drop, degree by degree, when we practice rudeness. If we want to rekindle the flames, we must stop excusing our offensive behavior and take action to correct it.

What would happen if we gave God permission to show us …

• Each time we interrupted someone because we felt like our words were more worthy than theirs?
• Each time we seized the remote because our viewing choices seemed better than our spouse’s?
• Each time we didn’t take time to listen to our coworkers because we were too busy?
• Each time we “snark” someone on social media because we didn’t agree with their opinion?

Rudeness can be hard to overcome, especially when it’s ingrained in our personalities. But as we confess it as sin and ask God to help us change, we’ll move in the right direction.

Even when we don’t communicate perfectly, we can celebrate the times we get it right. Rather than becoming discouraged when we mess up, let’s repent to God and the person we’ve treated rudely and vow to try again. Every time. Even if this means every hour – or every five minutes.

The more we take control of our rudeness, the nicer we’ll become. Then our words and actions will not only make God-honoring recordings, but our lives will allow others to see our Savior at work in us.

We’ll continue our discussion about 1 Corinthians 13:5 next time.

What about you?

I’d love to hear your thoughts about this post. (Others might also benefit from your comment.)

• How devastating would it be if you discovered you’d accidentally recorded a conversation with your spouse, child or neighbor that didn’t show you at your best?

• How quickly would you try to delete that recording?

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