More Grace

At TCB, communication is key in everything we do. Sometimes what we say can come across clearly, but there are also times where it appears wrong. Both parties have their own perception of the situation and can feel the other is wrong. So, why have this conversation? It is a TCB virtue to strive in grace.

If children live with kindness and consideration, they learn respect

Dorthy Law Nolte

Children learn respect by watching the guardians assigned to them. It’s about relationships and it takes hard work. It’s about being the peacemaker as we follow Christ. It’s about making a choice.

Make every effort to live in peace with everyone…

Hebrews 12:14

Years ago, a substitute teacher told their students that they needed to wait to go to the restroom, but the students took it to mean that they would not be able to go to the restroom at all. Some students went home upset and expressed this to their parents. In response, the parents addressed the substitute teacher the next morning. The parents, along with the Assistant Principal, caught the substitute teacher off guard and immediately started questioning them in a very harsh tone of voice. The tone of the words and the way they approached the substitute caught my attention. In that moment, it felt like the substitute teacher was being interrogated.

This made me appreciate the superiors who approached me with candor and calmness in a more private setting. I remember sitting down in a quiet area with all of the adults hashing out each person’s perception. My superior mediated the situation with grace and it was a model for me to learn, follow, and do the same.

What is grace? In the dictionary, the word means courteous or good manners. As a Christian, it means the free and unmerited (we are not deserving of) favor of God. Synonyms to help are: elegance, politeness, and dignity.

A fruit of the Spirit for believers to model

Galatians 5:22

In the substitute teacher situation, did any of the parties grant any grace to one another? When someone is talking to you, respond as if you are talking to yourself, and as a believer, look at others as if they were Christ our Lord. How will the tone of the words from your mouth sound?

Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.

Ephesians 4:29

TCB wants to extend gracefulness. That substitute teacher won favor by calmly explaining that because they were not familiar with the students under their care, the students would need to go to the restroom one at a time and wait for the last person to come back to keep track of the students. Here’s the lesson:

Let the words of my mouth and the mediation of my heart be acceptable in your sight…

Psalm 19:14