"Think"

What do you think about him,

I heard the cowboy say,

Talkin’ ‘bout a horse to buy,

I knew he had a way,

Of baitin’ me with questions,

To things that he long knew,

So I had to think about it,

Before my words I threw.

I like his confirmation,

He’s built real nice and straight,

I like the way he walks and trots,

He has a real smooth gait.

He squinted and he squatted,

Beside me on the fence,

I think he might get playful,

He winked and ever since,

I won’t forget the action,

Or what he chose to do,

He stepped down to take hold of,

The lead rope, gave a cue,

To bend the horse’s head around,

He gave a gentle tug,

That pony gave a beller,

And really came unplugged.

He bucked like he was trained to,

Nothing on his back,

My friend held to the lead rope,

But gave him all the slack.

And when the buck was over,

He made the pony move,

Round and round the round pen,

The thought was to improve,

His old rude behavior,

He make him walk, trot, lope,

Then stopped and bent his head around,

And I could only hope,

That this little lesson,

Would work out in the end,

And sure enough he yielded,

To the efforts of my friend.

We got the pony loaded,

The price not quite as much,

As the seller asked for,

Because the cowboy touch,

Had shown what all was needed,

For us to use this horse,

For all the work we had in mind,

At our home ranch of course.

I often think about it,

Now that I’m the one

To mentor some young cowboy,

And help him get things done.

Weigh out the words so careful,

Don’t be too quick to judge,

Put your hand upon the halter,

And gently give that nudge.

To see and show the answer,

To the question that you think,

‘Cause thinkin’, sayin’, doin’,

All should be in sync.

So that the final outcome,

Is a good one and the best,

Don’t react too quickly,

And you’ll likely pass the test.

“You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry…” (James 1:19, NLT)

Not much good comes from being reactionary. But unfortunately that’s the salient feature of how people function in this postmodern culture. We hear something, see something, experience something and it pushes all our emotional buttons. We react, blow up, get mad, and say things we regret. This is what characterizes the public debate, and it doesn’t take much discernment to see how counter-productive this mode has become. And unfortunately we Christians are all too often caught up in it rather than disconnecting from it. What to do? First, it’s a good idea to prayerfully ask why we react so negatively to something or someone. Many times it has nothing to do with the immediate, but more about some old unhealed hurt or unforgiven offense. Second, what about asking the Lord to daily control our reactions, and help us respond by the Spirit, especially when we’re tempted to sound off. Thinking and praying things through is a far better approach to anything that challenges us. It stacks the odds that we get it right. And for every right reason that’s what we need to do.

Lord, help us learn to respond by the Spirit, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Brent Flory, used by permission. Thanks, Brent, and God bless you.