BREAD SQUEEZING
For three years, Samuel Feldman ventured around Yardley, Pennsylvania, squeezing, smashing and poking bags of bread and cookies. Ultimately, he inflicted $8,000 in damages. Police were baffled, until one store suspected Feldman, and put him under surveillance. They caught him in the act three times, and he was arrested. One idle person with a mean streak created three years of aggravation and loss for no apparent reason. (Source: House to House, Vol. 32)
I wonder what possible pleasure one could obtain from creating such chaos in others’ lives? But in a sense, we’ve all encountered our share of “bread squeezers.” Those who derive twisted delight from squeezing the joy out of those around them—emotional vampires who suck the life out of others. Complainers and gossips— storm clouds who love to rain on our parades, and foment friction between others. They brighten up a room… just by leaving.
God takes a grim view of those who dishearten others. Proverbs 6:16 states that God hates one “who stirs up dissension.” Romans 1:30-32 declares that gossips are worthy of death. Once in the Old Testament, a group who grumbled “were killed by the destroying angel” (1 Corinthians 10:10). In God’s eyes, the statement “watch your words” is more than a phrase—it’s a way of life.
In 1 Corinthians 13, Paul penned perhaps the most beautiful description of love in all of literature. He sums it up in verse seven: Love “bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” In other words, we look for the best in others. We believe the best in others. We speak the best about others. We do what’s best for others.
What if we went through an entire day rising to this standard in our relationships? Such joy would fill us that we would forsake “bread squeezing” forever. I’ve certainly done my share of bread-squeezing, and I know how lousy I feel afterwards—like a loaf of moldy bread.
It's not hard to figure out why spiritual bread-squeezing is serious business with God. It runs so counter to his nature. God looks for what's good; Satan, the accuser, searches for what's wrong with others. We’re called to be conduits of God's love—not “bread squeezers.” When we’re tempted to vomit a volley of negativity, pause and ponder. Do I want to imitate God or Satan? To build others up, or spend my days as a bread squeezer?
Principle: Negative attitudes and speech squeeze the life out of those around us.
Ponder:
What steps can you take when you’re tempted to be a “bread squeezer?”
How can you become a greater encourager to those around you?
Pursue: For a deeper dive, study 1 Thessalonians 5:11-18.
Prayer: Lord, forgive me for the times when I am a “bread squeezer.” Help me to be a life-giver—in my speech and way of life.
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