Thursday; August 25

When you hear someone say something you don’t agree with, what is your initial response? For some of us, we can’t wait until they get done with their ludicrous thought so we can blast them with our superior logic. Others of us tune them out with the thought of “enough of this nonsense”. Yet, what if we actually decided to listen to them? What if, rather than immediately dismissing them as either being infidels or talking craziness, we listened to what they had to say and measured their points by logic and truth? I understand it is so much easier to live by the creed, “Don’t confuse me by the facts, my mind is already made up.”; but how much do we miss out on by taking the easy way out? Yes, adversarial thought can create emotional turmoil and cognitive dissonance, but it just might help us grow.

I am not advocating that we accept every new idea, nor back down from defending the truth; but something uplifting can happen when we keep an open mind – especially in matters of opinion. The wise man of the Old Testament challenged the thinkers of his day, “Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.” (Proverbs 27:17). Let’s not be afraid of discussion – who knows, maybe we’ll learn something new (and better).

Think About It!

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