Have you ever gotten carried away? Have you started thinking negatively and allowed those negative thoughts to gain momentum and get out of control? Have you been caught up in a mob mentality by a group of people? Was there someone who talked you down?
We have all seen it, even if from a distance. We may have gotten caught up in it. Someone suggests doing something, another agrees and goes a step further, and the next thing we know it has gotten out of control. People have gotten worked up and ready to act with a fury.
Once a mob mentality begins, it is hard telling where it will end. Sometimes, the best we can hope for is someone will have a little sense and pull the reins to keep the group from doing something egregious. Each group needs someone with a little restraint and some common sense to pour a little water on the flames.
Reuben was the eldest and the one who squelched the flames of his brothers. They were so upset with Joseph they were plotting to kill him. Reuben talked them back from the ledge. He convinced them to merely throw Joseph into a pit. His intent was to rescue Joseph and return him to his father, Jacob. His brothers followed his advice, but not his full intent. Joseph ends up being sold into slavery.
Perhaps the question for us is, are we the voice of reason? Are we Reuben’s when we see or hear things getting out of hand? Being the one who speaks up is not easy to do. Being the one who can convince others to back down is difficult. In fact, it is not typically the random person who can do so. It requires someone who has the respect of others. It takes someone with gumption. It is easier to be that someone when we fully trust in and lean on God to guide us.
I pray we all become someone people respect. I pray we seek to trust and lean on God. I pray each one of us will be the voice of reason when things start to get out of control. Be a Reuben. Be the voice of reason. Be someone others respect. Trust God in all situations. Lean on God to guide you.
Genesis 37:18, 21 They saw him from a distance, and before he came near to them, they conspired to kill him… But when Reuben heard it, he delivered him out of their hands, saying, “Let us not take his life.”
Marty Pressey 