What To Do About Sarcasm
October 29, 2007
Oct 29 – Just Kidding?
Ephesians 4:29 is one of those verses that always gets me. “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” What?! Do not let ANY unwholesome talk come out of your mouths? Or what about a few verses later when it says, “Nor should there be oscenity, foolish talk, or coarse joking…” Holy cow! If you combine all of those things, that makes speech one very difficult thing to control.
I heard a quote once that said, “In every word of sarcasm, there’s a bit of truth.” That’s the danger in it. While we may intend for some of the disrespectful or mean words we say to be taken jokingly, oftentimes, the person we speak to will walk away hurt, not because they think we’re completely serious but because maybe we hit on some slkice of truth that really does hurt them. For me, sarcasm is a weapon. I use it when I feel backed into a corner or when I’m upset with someone but don’t want to confront the person about it. In high school, one of my friends used sarcasm so much that I just didn’t want to be around him. It was impossible to be in a conversation with him without him making you feel bad about yourself for something you did or just feel stupid for something you said. That was his way of getting attention and making people laugh. It worked, but it hurt, and it definitely affected our friendship.
Now I am the first to tell you that I am rather senstive to words. I was raised to value them highly and to be careful when using them, so I admittedly respond more strongly to them than many people do. That being said though, words really do have power. I think we tend to forget that, especially in this age of computers and cell phones where we can so easily hide behind a screen when we talk to people. As you talk to people this week, whether in person, online, or in a text message, focus on that second part of the first verse from today - use words that are”helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” It may encourage someone you didn’t even know needed encouraging!
