On Sundays we've simply been reading sections of 1 Thessalonians and making a commitment to make room for God to change certain things in our lives. Last week I determined to work quietly with my hands. That would be my new 'practice', so to speak, not that it was a new thought, just something I'm not normally intentional about.

I called it "the week of meek" so I wouldn't forget to reign in my urge to talk about God and faith ALL day. I learned three things after practicing this attitude among non-Christians for a week:

1) It is a challenge for me to listen and be content with living as a Christian without talking about it A LOT. I tend to be slightly pushy and wordy about my beliefs without listening and getting the vibe of the other person.

2) Hard work is hard work, especially when done quietly. On a scale of 1-10, one being the quietest worker and ten being the most talkative, I believe I'm usually a seven or eight.

3) Sometimes I unintentionally use God, through overt Christian talk, to make my self look righteous, more righteous than I am. Really I've been aware of this habit since the late '90s, but I haven't changed much since then in the area of self-righteousness.

Practicing is hard. It's like training. It reveals weaknesses. But it's good. I realize I need more consistent training. I need to stretch my self further. I'm going to keep this week of meek going a little longer, at this point I'm thinking two more weeks.

Of course, I'm ready to talk about my faith if someone demonstrates curiosity, but when I feel the urge to tell them everything I think I know . . . I'm going to reign the urge in so I can give them an opportunity either to express more curiosity or to express their own beliefs and knowledge.

Oh, and here's an excellent principle I learned, intellectually, from Dr. Friedman, which I hope will help me keep reigning in my eloquent waxing:

“People cannot hear you unless they are moving toward you, which means that as long as you are in a pursuing or rescuing position, your message will never catch up, no matter how eloquently or repeatedly you articulate your ideas.”