OPINIONS

"Trust in the Lord completely, and do not rely on your own opinions. With all your heart rely on him to guide you, and he will lead you in every decision you make."  (The Passion Translation)

Opinion    (Oxford Online Dictionary)                                                                                                                      

[əˈpinyən]

NOUN

1.       a view or judgment formed about something, not necessarily based on fact or knowledge.

I found myself meditating in the shower this morning on the meaning of the word “OPINION” as translated in the Passion Translation of the Bible in Proverbs 3:5.  One of my most common ways of meditating is to simply repeat the verse over and over while I am thinking about it and recalling any information that I may have gained on its particular usage through my years of ministry training and experience… as well as through personal life experiences.   It is uncanny to me how, on many occasions, a light of understanding will suddenly pop into my senses and cause me to pause with a verbal announcement of “WOW, I never saw that before!”

Well, that happened again this morning when a couple of thoughts opened up to me.  First was the revelation of why (in the midst of everything that was happening) I felt a lot more at ease and at peace to share some of the deep sensitive things on my heart concerning Piper’s situation and what it meant to me… with somewhat strangers than with many of our family and friends.  I began to see this morning, that those people I shared some of my very personal feelings with had not known me long enough as to pre-form their own OPINIONS about us that would cloud their responses to me.

I realized that by the time we moved out of California in the summer of 2014, that I had become very guarded and selective with the information I shared with different people.  It was not a very enjoyable way to live, but after having so many things misinterpreted or seemingly not heard at all, I sensed the Lord leading me to become very aware of any personal subjects I spoke of, such as feelings that I was dealing with, finances, potential future plans and even the steps of faith we were taking.  

I was also warned to be more tight-lipped with the nature of any information concerning Piper’s worsening health.  These were some of the hardest directions that I had to follow as I always wanted to be open and upfront with those around me. But I was learning that my job in caring for Piper was not just in taking care of her physical needs, but also protecting her emotional and spiritual sides by being more aware of the words, actions, feelings and “OPINIONS” of others that came forth in the environment that surrounded her at any given time.

Secondly, I learned that those expressing negativity towards us were most times, basing their arguments strictly formed by their personal “OPINIONS” of us and were not necessarily, as the above definition explains, “based on fact or knowledge”.  The Lord also reminded me that in the year and a half following Piper’s passing, information has been brought to my attention that actually confirms these revelations.

As I thought on all of this while walking the dog just a little while ago, it painfully hit me that I have also been guilty, in the past, of basing my thoughts and/or discussion points about someone else’s situation partially on my own OPINIONS while not always knowing the full facts of the situation!  Oooh… that reality HURT!  It kind of reminded me of the (many) times I’ve smacked my head on a kitchen cabinet door forgetting that I had left it open! (Anyone else ever do that???)

So… What’s my point?  Well, I guess it would be for all of us to STOP and think BEFORE we utter anything about anything or anyone else and make sure that our input is based on fact and will be helpful to the situation at hand… and the best way to do that, is to follow the wisdom of the writer of Proverbs 3:5 and 

“With all your heart rely on Him to guide you, and He will lead you in every decision you make (as well as with the words and/or personal thoughts you share!).”

I’m learning that sticking with HIS OPINION on any subject is the best, smartest and most harmonious way to live by!  What do you think?