Average Joe

Back in ancient times (when I was in junior high and dinosaurs roamed the earth), there was a very popular series in Reader’s Digest called “I Am Joe’s Body,” by John D. Ratcliff. Each month, in Mrs. Sumrall’s 7^th grade science class, she shared the most recent publication with our class. “Joe” was a 47-year-old man, and each article was narrated in first person by one of his body parts. They were all titled in the same vein—”I Am Joe’s Heart,” “I Am Joe’s Liver,” “I Am Joe’s Lungs,” etc.—and the series took us on a guided tour of Joe’s body, with each body part reporting how it functioned and what could go wrong. 

From the perspective of junior high students, this novel approach of listening to Joe’s body tell us its secrets was much more interesting than listening to a science lecture, even a lecture by the much-loved Mrs. Sumrall. Recently, as I recalled the “Joe series,” I thought, “Wouldn’t it be interesting to read about some of Joe’s less tangible parts, as in “I Am Joe’s Soul” or “I Am Joe’s Conscience”? We could see what goes on in Joe’s conscience when he sees something uplifting or when he hears something offensive. We could follow Joe’s soul after his heart stops beating and hear the conversation between Joe’s soul and St. Peter. 

Maybe you have control of your tongue, but have you ever been around someone (Joe, for example), whose language was so “salty” that the very act of listening to him makes you feel guilty of something? Joe may not be taking the Lord’s name in vain, but he’s using coarse language or telling stories that would make your Grandma blush.

My guess is that most of us have been in that situation. If this is where you’re expecting me to offer instruction on what to do in such a “Joe” situation, you’re going to be disappointed because I am not (yet) writing an article called “I Am Joe’s Foul Mouth.”

It’s not news that God calls us to be mindful of our words. In Psalm 141:3, the Psalmist David prays, “Set a guard over my mouth, Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips.” I don’t know about you, but I need to pray those words daily, or something akin to them: “Lord, help me to keep my mouth shut instead of firing off the first thing that comes to mind. Amen.”

In his letter to the church at Ephesus (Ephesians 5:4), the apostle Paul reminds the Ephesians that there should be no “…obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place….” (Ephesians 5:4) It’s obvious that Paul didn’t have a Facebook account. He would roll over in his grave if he saw what some folks think is acceptable to put in print. If Paul had a Twitter account, he’d be shocked at the language. His tweets to the Ephesians would be tagged #dontlookEthel #hellinahandbasket #seenoevil.

In his second letter to Timothy (2 Timothy 2:16), Paul directs us to “avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly.” This is where a jury of my Christian peers would vote to convict me. Unanimously. 

But God also calls us to listen—both to His voice as well as to the voices of others. The old maxim is that God gave us one mouth and two ears for a reason–we’re supposed to listen twice as much as we talk.

“Anyone who belongs to God listens gladly to the words of God….” (John 8:47)

“Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it.’” (Isaiah 30:21)

“…blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!” (Luke 11:28)

Listening is fairly easy—but are we really hearing what God says, and even more importantly, are we paying attention? Here’s where an article called “I Am Joe’s Miniscule Attention Span” would be helpful. In her devotional, “Attitudes,” theological writer Dr. Kari Vo states that:

…God has called us to pay attention–to discern the spirit that is speaking through people, to notice the difference between those who love and obey Jesus and those who curse Him–whether by mouth, attitude, or action…. And He has given us the Holy Spirit’s help to be able to tell the difference between those who really love and serve Him, and those who simply say the right things in public.

Are we clean and sparkly on the outside as well as on the inside, or do we only say and do “the right stuff” when we’re in public? Let’s not beat ourselves up if the answer is no–we’re all guilty of imperfection. And while there’s no handy Reader’s Digest series about Joe’s soul or Joe’s conscience, or his foul mouth or his short attention span, there is a comprehensive guidebook known as the Holy Bible which gives even better advice. Just ask Joe.