Layers of Nonsense

In one of my favorite lines from Thornton Wilder’s play Our Town, the stage manager says, “Wherever you come near the human race, there’s layers and layers of nonsense. . . .”

Isn’t that the truth?

One of the most nonsensical things some of us do is walk through life being offended by every little thing. I have come to the conclusion that if I wanted to, I could probably find at least one thing every single day over which to be offended.

People are thoughtless. People are rude. People are insensitive. People don’t act the way they should, and they don’t do the things they ought to. I might be offended by your language, by the way you dress, by the way you eat, or by the way you drive!

Yes, there’s plenty of room for offense, but Proverbs 19:11 says, “A man's wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense.”

If you’re a follower of Christ and you find yourself often feeling offended, heads up! We have an enemy who absolutely delights in stirring up trouble by causing hard feelings and division, especially among believers. We have to make the choice to exercise wisdom, walk in patience, and overlook offenses. If we don’t, we play right into the hands of our enemy, the devil, and we make ourselves and all those around us miserable in the process.

1 Corinthians 13:5b; “[love] keeps no record of wrongs.”