Deep Waters

Have you noticed how unpredictable other people can be? Everything's going along just fine, and then BANG! Something sets them off, they explode. What just happened? It's odd. We only see people on the outside, but everything that really matters to them happens on the inside. And, as we observed together yesterday, a person's inner being, their inner life, their deepest emotions, hurts, secrets remain largely hidden from our eyes. Sure, we each open up to others, but mostly only to one or two people we're truly close to, if at all. Rarely do we bare our souls to the world at large. And that's true both ways – other people are just the same as us in that regard. So here's the mistake we're each prone to fall into again and again. We judge people on their outside – on what they say and do –  without making an effort to find out what's going on, on the inside; what's triggering their behaviour; how we can show consideration, empathy and love toward them despite how they're behaving. Look, we each have character flaws, we each have scars from the past, perhaps even gaping wounds in our souls – that affect how we behave. Proverbs 20:5 The purposes of a person's heart are deep waters, but one who has insight draws them out.  ESV What's going on in each person's heart is, indeed, very deep. So perhaps next time someone behaves badly, we could stop, ask questions, show empathy, take the time, have the love to figure out what's going on behind the façade. Because… the purposes of a person's heart are deep waters, but one who has insight draws them out That's God's Word. Fresh … for you … today.