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There is a book in the Bible that is just full of wisdom for our everyday lives, and that is the book of Proverbs. I’m going to share a proverb a day, which will show you the way! We’ll look at five different proverbs and see the wisdom that is there for us. I encourage you to make Proverbs a daily reading habit. There are 31 chapters, so it’s easy to read the chapter that corresponds to the day of the month. I’ve been doing that for several years and find the practical advice has been most beneficial in my life.
Today let’s look at Proverbs 22:10. It says, drive out the mocker and out goes strife; quarrels and insults are ended. Another translation reads, drive out the scoffer and contention will go out. Even strife and dishonor will cease.
Have you ever worked with a person who was a mocker and a scoffer? That’s the person who makes fun of others, who ridicules people and organizations, who is arrogant and causes problems seemingly on purpose. When there’s a mocker in the group, the work environment can be pretty miserable.
This proverb says by getting rid of a mocker, you get rid of strife. If you are in a management position, it’s good to remember there are times when the best thing you can do is to let an employee go. Now, I hope that doesn’t sound cruel, but a person who is intent on offending others—and some people are—can have very detrimental effects on an organization.
Of course, as Christians, we still must care about people regardless of how unlovable they are. And though we can never change people, the Holy Spirit can, so we shouldn’t give up praying for them. But that doesn’t mean we allow them to ruin the working environment for everyone else. Remember, the workplace is not a rehab center or a counseling office. We want to help people, when possible, but you don’t hire people to reform or change them; you hire them to do a job.
Solomon said, in his wisdom, you’re better off to drive out the mocker and the scoffer, for by so doing, the strife and dishonor will stop, people will be able to work productively together, and everyone will benefit, including the person who is the troublemaker. Allowing him or her to continue to get by with inappropriate behavior doesn’t help that individual.