To mask or not to mask, that is the question!
Well, it is only one of the questions that we face daily. Many stores are requiring masks, whether cities or states do or not. Is this virus thing real? That’s another question and accompanying that one are many more. Is it worse than the flu? Is it political? Are we losing our rights? Should I report people who are not obeying the directives or ignore those directives myself? What is the rate of infection and just who is dying?
Those things bombard us daily and … here is the ugly part … everyone has an opinion. Not only do we have an opinion, we express it constantly, even to the point of abusing others both verbally and physically who do not share our opinions. We have become a very impolite and cruel society.
There is an old quote “Tis better to keep quiet and be thot a fool than to speak and remove all doubt.”
That quote has been attributed to any number of people. It is definitely a quote describing 2020. There is a plethora of examples every day on social media, in the news media, in the political arena, and in our neighborhoods. It is not, however, the way of our LORD.
“1A gentle answer turns away anger, but a harsh word stirs up wrath. 2The tongue of the wise makes knowledge attractive, but the mouth of fools blurts out foolishness. 3The eyes of the Lord are everywhere, observing the wicked and the good. 4The tongue that heals is a tree of life, but a devious tongue breaks the spirit.” [Proverbs 15:1-4 HCSB]
Three of those first verses in Proverbs 15 tell us how the mouths of fools blurt out foolishness and provoke distress and anger in others, and how the tongue of the wise disperses anger and brings healing instead.
BUT, there is one verse in the midst of the others which should give us pause, verse 3, “The eyes of the LORD” see it all, both the good and the wicked. To mask or not to mask is not the question. The true question is when our LORD sees us and hears us, do we have the tongue of the wise that heals, or the mouth of fools that destroy.
