For those of you who contribute in “The Writing Challenge”, you realised that no submissions were being accepted until 3rd October, 2005. The Writing Challenge took a break.
Where Faithwriters usually posts the title for the challenge had this information: This week’s topic is “No new topic this week”.
I usually check the title for the week and whenever I do that, I normally avoid reading the details. I usually go straight to the topic.
Because of this, I almost thought that the topic was “No new topic this week”. I was ready to write my contribution on “No new topic this week”. And believe me! Once I tuned my mind that I had to say something, I figured out something to say.
This reminds me of what many of us usually do—we always have something to say even when we are not expected to say anything.
This also reminds me of the difference between the promptings behind a politician's speech and that of a prophet of God. A politician speaks because he has to say something while a prophet speaks because he has something to say.
But the idea of speaking because one has to say something is not exclusively a politician’s problem. There are many of us Christians who speak because we have to say something even when it could have been wiser to hold our breath.
The ‘problem’ is more when it comes to giving answers to some complicated questions or attributing cause and effect in relation to some of the puzzles in life.
Some people are desperate to give answers to the extent that they give answers even where no answers either exist or required.
This is like most of the search engines which would give you “answers” even though what they are giving are completely irrelevant.
As Christians, we should borrow a leaf from the man born blind in John chapter 9. He tried explaining what he knew but the Pharisees still had questions that weren’t important. When they continued bombarding him with questions, he answered and said “Whether he is a sinner or not, I don’t know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!” (v.25). Well, the blind man had the answers but the critics of Christ didn’t want to listen a result of which he refused to answer more questions.
It is, however, true that there are cases where we may not have the answers or where we may not even need to speak. We shouldn’t just talk because we have to say something. If we don’t know something, it is better to say as much rather than give a ridiculous and irrelevant answer.
Daniel, thanks for causing me to smile. I don't usually pay much attention to the "writing challenge"...sorry folks! When I read "your" title, I thought, how interesting...wonder where this will lead? Great article, and with that, I have nothing more to say.
