Fasting From Opinions
One of my favorite bloggers, Rachel Held Evans, is currently going through an ‘opinion fast’. She recently admitted she can be a little too opinionated sometimes. “Opinions are not inherently a bad thing, of course,” she writes, “but I get such a high from interjecting them into conversations that sometimes I talk over other people. Sometimes I don’t even listen to those with whom I disagree. Sometimes I don’t really care about learning or growing or building strong relationships, so long as everyone knows that I am right.” So for the past few days, instead of expressing her opinion, she has chosen to interview people about their views on Calvanism, conservatism, and gender rolls (which are usually her three biggest targets on her blog) without judging. She’s actually learned quite a bit!
I once wrote an article about the power of opinions. In the article I said that we “like to define ourselves by our beliefs. Whether they are political, religious or social, our beliefs shape our personality and view of the world. When someone challenges our beliefs, everything that defines who we are is threatened. That’s when the old fight-or-flight kicks in.”
Just tune in to either Fox News or MSNBC and you’ll see how we tear each other apart with our opinions. Is it really worth it? What if we took the time to really listen to one another? What could we learn?
In my article I wrote, “To really serve someone, you have to put yourself in their proverbial shoes. In 1 Corinthians, Paul writes, ‘To the Jews I became like a Jew to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law) so as to win those under the law’ (9:20). We don’t have to agree with each other, but we can definitely understand each other better. The more we get to know each other, the better we can serve one another.”
As Rachel said, having an opinion isn’t bad in and of itself. But when it gets to the point where your opinion keeps you from serving and getting to know your brother, then maybe you should follow my friend’s example and fast for a while. You never know what you can learn.