Receiving Constructive Criticism

This is my friend Cindy who I can trust to always give me Constructive Criticism that is so appreciate.

(Prov 15:31 NASB) He whose ear listens to the life-giving reproof will dwell among the wise.

I trust that you enjoyed your Christmas. I pray that it was a great time of fellowship, family, and fun. We will pick up this morning where we left off in our current series. In this verse Solomon – the wisest man in the land – teaches us that those who are wise are so, in part, because of their willingness to learn from others, and not just those who are like-minded. Yes, the wise have an ability (and even a willingness) to dialogue with, and learn from, people with both supporting and opposing views. Most people welcome supporting opinions, but Solomon tells us that it is wise to open yourself up to different perspectives and quite possibly even criticism.

The New Living Translation of this verse brings this point out clearly, as it reads: “If you listen to constructive criticism, you will be at home among the wise.” One of the main reasons why we should welcome constructive criticism is that sometimes the person with the opposing view is actually right. If we would be honest with ourselves we would admit that we are sometimes (if not often) wrong!

From time to time I listen to an old sermon or look over old life group teaching outlines and I realize that while I was completely sincere as I shared what I thought were timeless truths, but time and experience have taught me that I was sincerely wrong. I would have never realized the error of my ways had I not opened myself up to honest and enlightening dialogue with people of opposing opinions.

The wise are so because they know that they don’t know it all. The wise are ever learning and ever eager to learn more. Back in chapter 9 Solomon said: “Anything you say to the wise will make them wiser. Whatever you tell the righteous will add to their knowledge” (9:9).

Don’t ever get to the point where you are no longer teachable. It’s dangerous to think that you are always right and that others are always wrong; that’s a recipe for disaster. And don’t be quick in attempting to destroy those who oppose your views, because from time to time, you will find out that you are the one of the wrong side of the issue.

This reminds me of a book I finished a couple of weeks ago. The book spoke of the lives of four Leaders. All four have held leadership positions in a very powerful organization and all four did so with different perspectives and measures of success. The book mentions a point, a few of years ago, when things in this Organization were not going as well as they are today, when a CEO who had already done reorganize this organization twice previously and was on his way to his third, wrote an article that criticized the leaders in charge and their handling of the finances of this company. While one of the Leaders chronicled in the book welcomed the criticism and even reached out to the Leader of the company, to let him know that his criticism had not fallen on deaf ears, another of the District manager admitted that he could not stand reading the entire article.

Taking criticism is not easy, but it can prove extremely beneficial.

So what does this mean to you? It means that your character should be like that of the wise man who is willing to be reproved, if it means that he will learn something from it. Don’t close yourself off to people of opposing opinions. If you are willing to have open dialogue with a person of an opposing view then at least one, if not both of you, will benefit from the exchange.

Father, I thank You for the sobering reminder this morning that I do not know it all. I welcome constructive criticism and I enjoy open dialogue with people of both like and opposing views and opinions. The more I converse who people of different perspectives, the more I broaden my perspective and the wiser I become. I want to be the man/woman You have called, destined, designed, and desired for me to be. I declare, by faith, that I will participate in the process. I will learn all that I can, from all those that I can, as long as I can, so that I can pour into others all that You desire to pour into me! In Jesus’ name. Amen!