Job 31-33

Daily Devotional from Job 32--

Verses 19-20 (RSV)
Behold, my heart is like wine that has no vent;
    like new wineskins, it is ready to burst.
 I must speak, that I may find relief;
    I must open my lips and answer.

Have you ever been in a conversation with someone and felt like this? Like you have to say something or you will burst open? Like a volcano about to erupt?

Sometimes what we feel we need to say doesn’t necessarily need to be said. Elihu had listened to Job and his other friends and couldn’t hold in his thoughts any longer, basically calling all of them dumb--which didn’t help Job either.
 
Sometimes when someone is going through something, they just need a listening ear and a supportive shoulder. Sometimes, the more loving thing to do is to let the tension, the bursting feeling, the NEED to say something, pass. If we don’t, we might say something that is entirely unhelpful, hurtful, or untrue that may lead the other person to cease trusting us with their heart.

We want to be people who are safe and trustworthy, amen?

Robin Miller