Rant and Rave

A few years back, after I started this blog on grace, I also put up its polar opposite, where I was to rant and rave—you know the kind where all you do is complain and whine about anything. I thought that what I shouldn't say on this site, I'd freely write there.

I had four posts, which I struggled to compose. First off, I couldn’t find words nasty enough to make the post boil with rage. Unlike on this site where I couldn't stop writing, that angry site left me panting. I purposely forgot about it till its memory all came back when I reviewed my three most visited posts on leavesofgrace.  

Ewww! Did I write those?!

Conclusion? My most visited posts are those where I spouted venom—pieces that, in hindsight, are about disgrace. 

Conclusion? I have ceased to be a rant-and-rave person. Rather, even if I see things to rant and rave about, grace yanks out my blinders and fixes my vision on the vista of blessings.

Conclusion? Many people shun tame posts because they get excited over reading—and agreeing to—those that spew malice and insult.

Conclusion? Rant & rave is in.

Well, there are just too many blood-curling issues today that incite blustering. So this is the time I need to revisit . . .

My dad saying, “You can disagree without being disagreeable.”

My boss/mentor saying, “You get things done faster with friends rather than enemies.”

King Pyrrhus of Epirus (who defeated the Romans at Asculum in a.d. 279, but lost his best officers and many of his troops) saying, "Another such victory and we are lost." To him is attributed the popular adage, “Win the battle but lose the war.” Ranting and raving can win small battles, but the bigger picture is—the war. It's what should be won.

The Scriptures saying, “Stop being angry! Turn from your rage! Do not lose your temper—it only leads to harm. For the wicked will be destroyed, but those who trust in the Lord will possess the land.”  Psalms 37:8-9 (NLT)