“Ouch! What was that?”
“All I saw was wings … maybe a butterfly.”
“Nope, definitely not a butterfly; it just stung me!”
This exchange was near the top of the tower to slide into the pond at Camp Buckner last weekend. I made sure a stinger was not lodged in my leg and waited my turn to take the plunge into the pond below.
I even made another trip back up to slide again. This time, one of the youth got stung and then a child. We discovered a large (football size) wasp nest under a landing near the top of the tower. I guess it did not like us walking up there or maybe our sunscreen.
I did not let it slow me down from enjoining the experience of the slide or the retreat. Sure, it hurt. The pain went away after a while, but the reminder was still there as I felt intermittent burning.
Why can’t I always do that when faced with challenges — especially stings from people? Why can’t I just keep going and move forward? My natural response is to defend or attack back. How about you?
Philippians 2:3-8 tells us to look out for other’s interests and to be humble. Ephesians 4:29 tells us to choose our words wisely and use them only to help. Ephesians 4:32 tells us to be kind and forgive.
Much easier said than done.
When responding to a sting from someone, hit your pause button and choose to be kind, humble, wise, and forgiving. And certainly ask God to give you the strength you need to do so.