You want a person to change, to accept new ways of doing things, and you want to use the Bible, but you’re hitting a wall. Using “sneaky scripture” tactics can bypass defenses & can bring about positive change. This is how to do it.
You have that person in your life that you want to change. Yes, lets admit that — you want to alter their behaviors, because you’ve “been there, done that”, and we don’t want them to go through the crap you went through.
You know that the Bible is the ultimate wellspring of life, and you tried scripture, but man-o-man, the fights that came afterwards was something you don’t want to do again.
You could keep hammering until you bent them to your will, or you could adopt a new tactic to change their mind.
”The Sneaky Scripture” method.
Here’s a hypothetical conversation:
”Listen, I care about you. I want you to do so well, that you’ll shine like a floodlight in this world. I want you to have a full and rich life right now. I truly want to you have it, but the things that you are doing right now are not getting you there. I know, and I truly understand that how you see things right now seem right, but it’ll kill you in the end. Let’s work this out together.”
Did you catch it? Did you read all the scripture I put in there? If you didn’t, here’s the list:
- Matthew 5:15-16 (“…that you shine like a floodlight…”)
- Mark 10:29-31 & John 10:10 (“…to have a full and rich life right now…”)
- Proverbs 14:12 (“…how you see things right now seem right, but it’ll kill you…”)
- Isaiah 1:18 (“…Let’s work this out together.”)
That’s 5 passages within one sentence. That’s how you “sneak scripture” through their defenses. There are some other things to consider as well, which will help you to help the ones you love and care about. This method bypasses the mind’s defenses, so that you can be heard. Keeping this tactic in mind, let’s look at some other considerations.
If they’re ticked off, leave it alone.
Oh how I wish that I would have remembered Proverbs 9:7-8 in many of my discussions with angry, upset people. It would have saved so much time and energy.
If they’re ticked off, angry, or upset, giving any advice is…quite frankly…stupid.
As God has done with me when I’ve been upset at things, so should we all do with others — leave them be, until they cooled off, then talk to them.
DROP THE KING JAMES!
“Christian-eze” is fine for some. Personally, I hate it, especially when it’s used on new Christians or non-believers.
Dragging out book, chapter, and verse, all wrapped up in Elizabethan WILL NEVER help your cause in changing the mind of a person headed for destruction.
Drop the lingo and stick to using the “sneaky scripture” tactic within normal conversation.
Using this method does several things.
One…it lowers mental defenses, so that the information you’re trying to convey will be heard. The mind will fight against any external stimuli when said stimulus makes the situation uncomfortable or painful.
Yeah, yeah,..I know…”get over it”, right? Well hey, do you want to help your loved ones towards a better life, or do you want to act like an ass and feel better about yourself? It’s a choice, so choose wisely.
Final thoughts.
Many of us (Christians) are taught that the Word of God has power (Hebrews 4:12, 2 Corinthians 10:4), and we want to use scripture verbatim. This is narrow thinking, and shows a lack of maturity in faith. The Word of God should be able to be heard in our conversation and show in our intentions. ANYONE can parrot a passage, so don’t be like an empty can, because those things rattle the most and make an unpleasant sound. Weave scripture into your conversations with the ones you love that are headed down a dark path. I promise you that you’ll see results in time (did you catch the Isaiah 55:11…”I promise you that you’ll see results…”).
