The Best Way Out

One who rebukes a person will later find more favor than one who flatters with his tongue. - Proverbs 28:23

Don't we usually prefer the easy way out? I don't know anyone who enjoys pain, even when the outcome is beneficial, yet most of us are willing to go through surgery in order to achieve greater health. Why, then, is it so hard to go through discomfort to help others achieve greater spiritual health and character?

It probably has more to do with our own fear of rejection than our concern for a friend. We prefer solutions that are less confrontational. What is needed is the willingness to endure short-term discomfort to achieve long-term results. As we see in the verse above, if we rebuke (rightly) our favor will ultimately be greater.

Human relationships are very complicated, but God is the Great Counselor and if we follow His instruction our confusion will always be less and the outcome more pleasant.

Truth springs from argument among closest friends. - David Hume