He Speaks for Himself

Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. --Matthew 5:11 (NIV)

I find it difficult to not get my dander up when someone insults my Christian beliefs. I can become quite defensive in such cases. I'm learning that in order to be a more effective witness, I need to let some things just slide by. Rather than defend myself and my doctrinal stance, I should make more of an effort to remain silent.

Why waste time and energy getting overly agitated? Why bother responding to those who will not hear us anyway? A better course of action is to let the Holy Spirit take over. This is what it means to be self-controlled. In my controlled silence, God speaks.

When I stop waggling my tongue, I hear his voice much more clearly. When I'm not talking over Him, his voice resonates within me. He reminds me that I don't need to take things personally. More importantly, He calms my emotions and assures me that I am not the one being attacked, He is. As such, He will deal with the situation accordingly. My witness and testimony is stronger when I let Him speak for Himself.

Reflecting Pool

When have you felt personally attacked for being a Christian?
Have you ever said something you regret in the process of defending yourself?