In my family, we were masters of sarcasm. It could also be said that our wit and humor would sometimes cross the line to become weapons of mass destruction. After a family battle, if you weren’t laughing, you were one of the walking wounded left on the battlefield.
Just like decluttering our homes of junk or having piles of clothes that no longer fit, we need to sort out attitudes, values, and personality traits that no longer work for us or are unhealthy. Being sarcastic may have served me for a time, but at some point I needed to choose a better way, for my own mental health and for the sake of my relationships and the people around me.
We all have the power to decide what doesn’t work for us anymore and get rid of it!
1 Corinthians chapter 13 is called the love chapter. Paul talks about how people can act all holy and religious, but warns that if they don’t love others, all that religious fervor is worthless. He moves on to explain that all our work to gain knowledge is limited, but love is limitless. He ends the chapter by encouraging us to grow up and leave childish ways behind. We don’t have to worry about knowing everything or getting everything right, because God knows. His summation: “Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.”
As I attempt to declutter my life of snarky habits, impatience, boastfulness, rudeness, jealousy, scorekeeping, and demanding my way, I get rewarded with the experience of true love. 1 Corinthians 13:7 says, “Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.”
Life is a journey of change. Are we willing to evaluate ourselves honestly and make a change? To declutter? I pray we all discover, like Paul, “I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done.”
“Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” Matthew 22:37
Leave a comment