Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Message from Phil Adams, Principal JH/SH & Central Elementary

He who answers a matter before he hears it,
It is folly and shame to him.

Proverbs 18:13, New King James Version

Any of us who watch football on TV has seen it. Maybe you are annoyed as much as I am when it happens. A referee throws a flag, and there is a conference among the officials on the field. The commentators can’t help themselves as they speculate on what the infraction might be. Often they are right, often they are not. One thing is for sure: If they could restrain themselves for another 15 seconds they would find out with the rest of us.

Anyone who deals with children has learned that there are always three sides to the story: His side, her side, and the truth. One of the most challenging tasks for each of us is withholding judgment about a matter until we have heard all sides. Often we are tempted to act on what we “know” well before we actually know it. Sometimes we want to appear decisive. Other times we want to rely on our intuition. Maybe we want to believe something so badly that we take shortcuts. Perhaps we feel a sense of urgency to act when the urgency does not really exist. At times we bring preconceived ideas about a person to the situation and don’t fairly weigh the evidence. I am sure there are other reasons.

Whatever the reason, this verse teaches us to slow down, and hear, really hear out a matter before acting. It is a rare circumstance that requires snap decisions without time to reflect. In a school setting we are faced with hundreds of decisions, small and not so small, every week. For my part, I am asking the Lord to make this verse part of who I am in order to act wisely every day.

1 comment:

  1. Doc,

    Thanks so much! Very profound. Glad I slowed down enough to read this today :)

    Sure glad to know you're in a position to live out truth to our students...and some of us staff too!

    Frost

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