Yay for naysayers!

So I went and did something stupid the other day.

Actually, by saying it was stupid I make it sound as if it was unintentional, but it wasn't. It was selfish, and (what's more) quite well thought out. I had told myself that I wouldn't do it for such-and-such reasons, and having patted myself nicely on the back for being so mature about the whole situation and coming up with good reasons not to do it, I went and did it.

Stupid, huh.

And the thing is, it was quite easy to justify it to myself and to others afterwards, but when I told one of my very best friends, Princess Sarah, she immediately cut through to the core of my selfishness, and gently and kindly rebuked me. And you know what? I was so so so encouraged by her rebuke, even through the 'ooh, aah, cringe cringe cringe, uuuhh, bbooooh' feeling, that I asked her to repeat it.

Now, I know that makes me sound like a masochist, but her gentle words made me realize how long it had been since I'd last been challenged so clearly. And what I really appreciated, was that she was more concerned about what was best for me - the growth of my godliness - rather than whether I would dislike her for picking up on a seemingly small matter [ahah! Self-justification again!]. That just made me re-realize that I have so many yay-sayers in my life - people who are hesitant to say 'nay' to me or hesitant to rebuke or critique my actions, so that I end up thinking that everything I do is superwonderfulhunkydory, even when it isn't. Furthermore, it really made me realize that I desperately missed having someone saying 'nay' when I needed to hear it: when I had misbehaved badly, when I'd gone too far, when I'd been inconsiderate and selfish.

Like Proverbs reminds us: "Wounds from a friend can be trusted but an enemy multiplies kisses" (27:6)

Hahaha, okay, that's a bit extreme, but you get my point!

Let's hold on to those people in our lives that do say nay, 'cause they are far and few between.