“Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: You should mind your own business…”
- 1 Thessalonians 4:11
I’ve been studying humans for a long time. And I’ve come to a conclusion.
You all can turn nothing into something faster than any creature God ever made.
Sure… Dogs have drama too.
A cat crosses the yard.
The UPS man pulls into the driveway.
Some strange dog has the audacity to walk down our road.
Those are serious matters requiring immediate investigation and… excessive barking.
But human drama is different.
My human was sitting on the porch scrolling through that glowing rectangle he carries everywhere when he sighed, shook his head and muttered, “Good grief.”
Naturally, I raised my head.
Turns out somebody said something about somebody who heard something from somebody else who apparently didn’t like somebody to begin with.
I tried following along.
Lost interest.
Licked my paw.
My human finally laid his phone down and said, “Buddy, sometimes the best way to deal with drama is not to audition for a part.”
Well there you go…
Seems humans spend a lot of time attending arguments they weren’t invited to, carrying offenses that don’t belong to them and fighting battles Jesus never asked them to fight.
And these days, you don’t even have to leave home to find drama.
It’ll come right through your phone and sit down beside you.
Jesus certainly knew about drama.
Folks criticized Him.
Misunderstood Him.
Questioned Him.
Gossiped about Him.
Lied about Him.
Accused Him.
And crucified Him.
Yet He never let the chaos around Him become chaos within Him.
Why?
Jesus knew who He was.
He knew His Father.
And He knew His purpose.
Maybe there’s a lesson for us.
When we know who we are in Christ, we don’t have to explain ourselves to everybody.
We don’t have to answer every criticism.
Correct every rumor.
Respond to every post.
Win every argument.
Sometimes the most Christlike response is silence.
Sometimes it’s forgiveness.
Sometimes it’s walking away.
Sometimes it’s praying for somebody instead of talking about them.
And sometimes it’s simply saying, “That’s not my circus, and those aren’t my squirrels.”
Paul said to make it our ambition to live a quiet life.
Not an insignificant life.
A peaceful one.
Jesus said, “My peace I give you…”
- John 14:27
The world will offer you plenty of drama.
Jesus offers you peace.
And here’s what this old dog is learning:
You get to choose which one gets your attention.
So when somebody starts barking on the other side of the fence, maybe you don’t have to bark back.
Stay close to Jesus.
Guard your heart.
Watch your words.
Love people anyway.
And keep walking.
Because not every fight deserves your presence…
Not every opinion deserves your response…
And not every cat deserves the chase.
Sometimes the wisest thing you can do is lie down at the feet of Jesus… and let the world bark without you.
Keep the Faith… Carpe Diem
