Before you get in someone’s face, be sure your breath doesn’t stink.
-- A Kindergarten student reprimanded for running down the hallway

Do you remember as a child when your teacher leaned over you to help you with your reading or just stood close to you as they lectured, and you smelled the remnants of coffee, a pack of Kool, Pall Mall, Marlboros or Virginia Slims, and whatever else they ate that left that unpleasant smell floating in their mouth? You would try your hardest, without being impolite or conspicuous, to move away from the stale smell only to have that teacher move closer to you because she believed you weren’t really listening or paying attention. Of course nothing’s changed; teachers still drink coffee, smoke cigarettes (though far less than when we were younger), eat bad-breath-producing food, and then get in a kid’s face to get their point across. And there’s not a peppermint in the world that can kill any of it!

Now you’re the adult, trying still to forget sensory memories of “teacher breath,” and people have gotten in your face. Not only is their breath foul, so is their message. And the message is not only foul because of the intrusion and assault it’s placed on you, the messenger has some funky issues of their own that completely disqualify him/her from being in your face in the first place. You know these people – the ones who are gripped and hell-bent on telling you how and why to arrange the matters in your life, when every failure and breakdown in theirs sticks out like spicy mustard on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. They’re always ready to tell you what is wrong, where you went wrong, and how wrong you will remain if you do not follow their simple solutions. These are the folks who have all your answers but none for their own situations or circumstances, and, in many cases, even less awareness that something is not right for them.

This is not to suggest that other people can’t help you see some of your difficulties even though they stumble in their own stuff. Sometimes others do have or discover your cure while they’re going through and desperately seeking a way out of their frustrations. In fact, the best way to receive your deliverance is to help someone else receive theirs. This is not an indictment on watching (or ministering) over the welfare of others, but of not looking in a mirror to see the thorn in your own eye. Jesus cautions that pointing the finger at other’s faults without checking yourself first is hypocritical and certainly counter to the ways in which He wants us to respond to one another.

Believe it or not, teachers can taste the bad smell and know they should put something sweet in their mouths to lighten the odor. However, they don’t because they can’t stop. Time is of the essence. They are bound by the Standards which must be covered in a short period of time. Conversely, the spoilsport who never ceases to stop their unqualified interference into your space often has no idea he’s raggedy, and will continue to be in your space until you stop the madness in its tracks. Whatever gave them space to believe they could tend your welfare must be exorcised and a new arrangement negotiated. If you want them out of your face, space, and business, put them out (lovingly, if you can), then shut the door (quietly, if you can) to any mention of your stuff.

Anything different will always call up memories of “teacher breath.”

Sadiqqa © 2008