The wise in heart...

According to Webster, wise means: 1 a : characterized by wisdom : marked by deep understanding, keen discernment, and a capacity for sound judgment b : exercising or showing sound judgment : prudent 2 a : evidencing or hinting at the possession of inside information : knowing b : possessing inside information c : crafty, shrewd d : aware of or informed about a particular matter —usually used in the comparative in negative constructions with the I like 2a for this verse! The definition of discerning is: showing insight and understanding : discriminating Pleasant is defined as: 1: having qualities that tend to give pleasure : agreeable 2 : having or characterized by pleasing manners, behavior, or appearance Lastly, the definition for promote is: 1 a : to advance in station, rank, or honor : raise b : to change (a pawn) into a piece in chess by moving to the eighth rank c : to advance (a student) from one grade to the next higher grade 2 a : to contribute to the growth or prosperity of : further b : to help bring (as an enterprise) into being : launch I used to be an English teacher. Words were my forte and I loved showing off how many of them I knew. Trouble was, the students I was privileged to teach weren’t as familiar with these words as I was. They weren’t used to the deeper meaning of things and in my pride, I held that against them. I was so caught up in making a name for myself that I wound up doing just that only in a way that wasn’t quite what I had imagined. Surprisingly, I am no longer a teacher. I wasn’t pleasing enough with my words for them to have the effect that they should have. My heart was all about Stef and bringing these lower beings into my heightened sense of wisdom. Yeah, I am throwing up in my mouth a little too. Through the years, the Lord has tempered me. He has shown me that it’s all well and good to know what to say, what to teach, what to share. But the method I use is what is going to attract—or alienate—people to me. My words are to be pleasing, to be sweet, to be kind, to be full of grace. I am to season my speech and to talk in a way that shows folks that I understand their stage of life, their way of talking and learning, and their way of listening. Who wants to talk to someone who is so full of him/herself that there isn’t room to give another’s opinion? My wisdom came at a great price. I had devoted myself to teaching. I put it in front of so many things, including my family but most importantly, in front of my God. Teaching was my god and like all other false deities, it turned into ashes. That was several years ago. Since then, I strive to be careful with my words. I no longer have that high opinion of myself that I was the one to set the world on fire. Yeah, burn scars hurt worse than just about anything and I have my share of them to prove that it was me who was in the hot seat. Nowadays I have the privilege of being a grandmother to two young boys. They look at me with genuine love and pay attention to the words I speak. If Granny says it it must be true! Therefore, I try to pay very careful attention to what comes out of my mouth. I talk on their level, explaining things in a manner that they can understand and explain back to me. Guess what? Success! Ahh, if only I had had them first, before those lofty ideas that I was teaching material promoted themselves in my stubborn mind. The wise in heart are called discerning, and pleasant words promote instruction. Yep, that’s me. Wise in heart. Older and wiser! My nice words, “and the sweetness of the lips” (as the King James Version cites it) go much further than those puffed up ones I used back in the day. My grandsons are learning. I am learning. Guess the old adage is true, when reworded to suit my situation, that is. You can teach an old dog new tricks! Besides, having to ask for salt for the big feet I often placed in my mouth due to my lack of care with my words was making my blood pressure too high! June 19, 2013