Being Sensitive To Others Around Us

In the Bible we read over and over again how Jesus was sensitive to people and what they were going through. He reached out to them with compassion. Recovering the life God intends us to live is learning how to move from being overly sensitive about our own needs and feelings to becoming aware what others are going through and truly caring about them.

Don’t be jealous or proud but be humble and consider others more important than yourselves.  Care about them as much as you care about yourselves.

Philippians 2:3-4

It’s important to be sensitive about what we say, when we say it, and how we say it.  We need to learn to be honest but compassionate to those we are speaking with. This goes hand-in-hand with truth telling.

Everyone should be quick to listen.  But they should be slow to speak.  They should be slow to get angry.  ...

James 1:19

Say only what will help to build others up and meet their needs.  Then what you say will help those who listen.  Ephesians 4:29

Loving God, please help us to be careful and sensitive about what we do or say so we don’t offend others.  Keep us from the temptation that so often catches us up of insensitively saying and doing “what we want when we want,” and causing harm to others.

Help us to live within the boundaries You teach us when You say:

You say, “I have the right to do anything.”  But not everything is helpful.  Again you say, “I have the right to do anything.”  But not everything builds us up.  No one should look out for their own interests.  Instead, they should look out for the interests of others. 

1 Corinthians 10:23-24

Help us to be confident in being who You’ve created us to be so we don’t live over-sensitively to the words or actions of others.  We are not who others say or think about us.  Only Your perspective of who we are matters and we want to stand in Your love and acceptance. 

Help us to speak and behave with wisdom and compassion.  Help us to be sensitive, gentle, and kind in all our dealings with others.  Amen

Well, I think that being caring is a great foundation for living with sensitivity, don’t you?  Let’s let God’s care for ourselves and others grow in us today.