February 14 - Proverbs 22:11

February 14 - Proverbs 22:11

“Those who love a pure heart and are gracious in speech will have the king as a friend.”

There was an article on CNN.com today about the Four-Star General and Five-Star Grace.  It seems that a White House adviser was at a state dinner and glancing behind her, saw the pants of a waiter and asked for a glass of water.  When the man graciously brought her the water, she realized that though his pants might have looked similar to the waiter’s, the rest of him was a four-star general.  Rather than embarrass her or challenge her, he chose the way of grace.  Further down in the article, the author mentioned (not by name) a singer who was approached by an usher at a show he was doing – inquiring if he was the comedian who would open the show.  The singer demanded that the usher be fired. 

As I was growing up, there were two types of people that I remember.  Those that made a big scene if they were injured, no matter how great or small – no matter if it was an accident or deliberate.  It was embarrassing for everyone around them when they screamed and cried, whined and moaned about a small injury – especially if it had been unintentional.  Then, there were those who sucked in a breath and managed to get out of everyone’s field of vision before reacting to the pain that had occurred.  The last thing they wanted to do was embarrass anyone, so they set their own feeling aside to ensure that others were comfortable in the situation.

Graciousness in all things.  The stories will be told of those who are gracious and those who aren’t.  I know which stories I want to be told about me.