Proverbs 19

Smart people know how to hold their tongue; their grandeur is to forgive and forget. Proverbs 19:11 The Message

Do you know a person who just can't hold their tongue? One of my younger relatives was always complaining other kids didn't like him. They were always picking on him. This young man was one of the nicest people I knew. I just didn't understand why other kids were picking on him.

One day I happened upon him interacting with some other boys. He didn't know I was listening. He was getting agitated and telling these other boys what they were doing was wrong. We were at a park and the boys were riding their bikes on the sidewalk by the bathrooms. If these were my boys, I would have told him not to be riding his bike there and I am sure if his parents where there they would have said the same thing. If someone had come out of the bathroom at the wrong time there would have been an bike-person accident.
I tried to explain there is a difference between doing something stupid and doing something dangerous. The other kids were picking on him because he was always telling them what to do. As soon as they did something he didn't think they should, he would start bossing them around. This is a difficult concept for a 7 or 8 year old boy to understand.

I wonder how many of us who are 30, 40 or 50 really understand. When do you step in and question what a friend is doing? Do you wait until after your friend has an affair? Do you wait until all the credit cards are maxed out or just half of them?
"Smart people know how to hold their tongue..." Smart people also how when to say something.