Offended

I remember a time in my teen years when I heard that the book of Proverbs in the Bible was a book filled with wisdom things. I thought that would probably be a good thing to read and take note of. I mean, I wanted to be wise. Who wouldn’t, right?

There are some things that stick out from that reading. Honestly, I’m more of an idea person than a specific fact person. So, I had to do a quick search tonight to find something that I knew was in there.

I know there are more, but here is one. Proverbs 19:11 “A person’s wisdom yields patience; it is to one’s glory to overlook an offence.” One interpretation of this at theconsecratedwoman.com is “Wise people are patient when others act offensively towards them. They don’t act or speak without thinking first. It doesn’t mean they accept what is contrary to their values and beliefs.”

Being offended, whether on your own or on behalf of someone else, is not falling in to the category of a wise thing to do. Why? I believe that is because it does not lend to peace or anything productive. When there is an issue or a troublesome situation, acting patiently, seeking to understand, and working towards a solution; are always better.

Of course I mess this up. I’m irrevocably human. But, a statement was made to me recently along the lines of, if I was (fill in the blank), I would be offended. I stopped and thought about this. And decided, no I wouldn’t. I wouldn’t have been offended. Because I would have understood that the intent behind the thing wasn’t meant to be evil. And really, there are so many differences in people and the way that they see life, that intent is really most of what matters.

I’ve been in situations in life when the 110% goal behind someone else’s actions or talk to me was to offend me. But, I chose not to be offended. Partly because I didn’t want them to win. And mostly because I wasn’t going to let someone else have that much power over me, to twist my emotions like that. Of course there are times that I did get offended, and . . well . . I’m a work in progress.

Tonight I am thankful for the choice to be offended or to seek wisdom and patience. Tonight I am thankful for the choice to calm down and regroup when I get it wrong. Tonight I am thankful for peace. ❤️