Behold my servant, whom I uphold,
my chosen, in whom my soul delights;
I have put my Spirit upon him;
he will bring forth justice to the nations.
He will not cry aloud or lift up his voice,
or make it heard in the street;
a bruised reed he will not break,
and a faintly burning wick he will not quench;
he will faithfully bring forth justice.
– Isaiah 42:1-3 (ESV)
I’ve had these words echoing in my head for about a week now. I guess I’ll have to mark that as God speaking to me. So the words that kept coming up was this: “a bruised reed he will not break” I think about how gracious Jesus is and how judgmental & condemning I am. So many occasions where I’ve jumped to conclusions, instead of earnestly hearing the other side first. I feel like “Please Jesus, protect me from your followers” is a valid response for Christians and non-Christians alike. I wonder if anyone has had to pray that after meeting me? So much of what I say is truthful but fairly harsh & inconsiderate. I say that friends are the ones who will tell you the truth, but that’s only part of the story. I think God’s people should be gentle. Yes, I count myself as one of God’s people. But gentle, I am not. When people hear me talking, they don’t think “speaking truth with love“. Rather, it probably more like “a clanging cymbal” :sigh: God save me from myself.