I was at a restaurant a few weeks ago and as one of the kitchen staff walked by, he said out loud ‘how can a straw break a camel’s back?’ talking to no one in particular.
As he was not addressing me, I minded my business but smiled, thinking ‘sir, if you only knew’.
Fast forward to as I sat at home, watching church on the screen. A moment before, I had decided to put my phone across the room so I would not be distracted and be fully present for the message. As soon as my pastor started, I knew it was a message just for me. It was then that he talked about ‘the straw that broke the camel’s back.’
You see, in this proverbial story that is shared, while it was a straw that finally broke the camel’s back, what we fail to see is the already heavy weight that it had already been carrying. There were issues upon issues that had been swept aside as they were deemed to be ‘fine’.
How often do we dismiss things saying they are ‘fine’ when in reality they are not?
Each time we do this, the proverbial weight gets heavier and heavier, until one day, a seemingly small and insignificant thing causes a reaction that far outweighs the words that were said or the action that was done in that moment. This reaction is likely due to weeks, months or even years of ignored slights. Then one day… a simple straw is added, and the proverbial camel’s back gets broken.
How do we ensure that we don’t get to this place? To be honest, sometimes we don’t even realize that we are headed there. We think we can manage that one more thing.. or we can ignore that one more statement because the person doesn’t mean anything by it.
However, if something is consistently interfering with your peace or your ability to function, pay attention and pray for wisdom on how to address.
Unfortunately most will not see the camel carrying the very heavy load, but what they will see (and hear) is the commotion as the camel falls to the ground due to that last straw being added, and then wonder how could one such small thing cause such a big blow up.
Is there a situation that has been weighing you down and you are concerned that one more thing will happen and it will lead to a response that is unlike you? I encourage you to pray for wisdom. James 1:5 states, ‘if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.’
Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for the prompting of when it’s time to truly pay attention to all that is going on. Help me to be diligent in dealings with myself and with others so that it does not get to a boiling point when having conversations before hand could have prevented a blow up. And Father, if healthy conversations are not possible, give us the wisdom to know how to proceed in a way that honors you.