Discourse and disagreements have been the centerpiece of discussion at dinner tables from Adam and Eve to Cain and Abel to King Saul and Jonathan to Peter and Paul to…my family’s table and probably yours.
So when the topic of March snowstorms comes up around coffee and dessert, the ensuing conversation seems like I’m from Pluto and your from…California. Just kidding.
But there’s no doubt that people are as passionate about holding their breadth for the first crocus bud while others feel it’s the most exciting time of the year when Mother Nature dumps two feet of snow over those same flowers so they can get in a couple more weeks of skiing.
Such sharp disagreements about weather makes everyone around the table wonder why God designed us with such distinct preferences and opinions.
Lately, the country has slid so far into incivility when it comes to table topics for even the lesser issues such as nuclear enemies and national budgets and how to handle poverty.
A relative’s Christmas party sunk to an all-time low when someone walked in with a politically-charged sweatshirt that disparaged The President.
In fact, this new reality spawned a nationwide billboard campaigns that urged America to be civil. Imagine that, table manners being taught by a faceless billboard.
You can always change the subject when a religious-political table conversation pops up when clearing the table. Or, we can be civil recognizing that honest disagreements can happen over things we have control over and not worry about the things that Mother Nature keeps out of our control.
Conversations that start off about the cold of March’s meteorological madness can heat up to irreconcilable hurts from political or religious differences. Just ask Saul and Jonathan.
PORTAL TO HEAVEN: Jesus taught more than civility when he came into disagreements with wicked men. How much more will civility among family and friends be a portal to heaven in a day and age that’s grounded in incivility?
Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.
Colossians 4:6 NIV