Oh, That I Would Keep Silent!

I am reading Job at the moment. Interesting book. The expression, ‘with friends like these, who needs enemies’ comes to mind. Poor Job! I cannot even begin to imagine how the poor fellow would have been feeling, and then his 3 ‘friends’ came along and heaped misery on top of misery.
I found a verse that stood out to me. Job is speaking after the third friend’s speech.

“Oh that you would keep silent, and it would be your wisdom!” Job 13:5

As I read this, I stopped short.
How many times have I been quick to put in my ‘two cents’; to give my opinion or advice? So often, when a friend comes to me, wanting to just talk, I barely let them finish before I am formulating some piece of advice that I feel is imperative for them to hear. I listen, only so I know when I can finally speak. I don’t listen because I want to hear.
And yet, I myself so often feel like I am drowning in others’ advice and good intention. I end up not talking to people, because I just can’t handle having more advice... for the seventh time, let alone the seventeenth...
I should know better than to turn around and do the same to others.
Roy, a man I deeply respect, often says about listening to other people, ‘hear their pain’. He tries to instill in me the skill of listening and going behind the words or actions of others, and to hear the pain that is found there. Wise advice.
And to hammer home the point to myself, a verse that often comes to correct me:

“Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger.” James 1:19

Oh, that I would be silent! May I be found to be a place of refuge amongst the floods of opinions. May I be the one person my friends can come to for a non-judgmental listening ear. May I be quick to listen and slow to speak.