The story is told of two polite people who are having dinner together.  On the table there is a dish with one big piece of fish and one small piece of fish.  They politely say to each other:  “You may choose first.”

“No, you may choose first.”

This goes on for a while.  Then the first person says, “OK, I’ll take first.”   And he takes the BIG piece of fish.

The second person says, “Why did you take the big piece?  That’s not polite!”

The first person says, “Which piece would *you* have taken?”

The second person replies, “Why, I would have taken the SMALL piece, of course.”

The first person says, “Well, that’s what you have now!”

New Collegiate Dictionary defines a polite person as someone who is “marked by an appearance of consideration, tact, deference, or courtesy.”   The quality of politeness is one which seems to be disappearing in our society.  As I grew up, I was taught to say, “Yes, ma’am” and “Yes, sir”, terms not often heard by young people today.  Even the words “please” and “thank you” are not used as often as they should be.

Some might say that politeness is a “small” thing, and it is, but that doesn’t mean it is insignificant.   Politeness is a lot like salt — you don’t always pay attention to it when it is present, but it is very obvious that something is lacking when it is absent.

Of all people, Christians should be most polite because politeness is a characteristic of agape love.  Being polite means being aware of and respecting the feelings of other people.

“Remind the believers to….be ready to do good, to speak no evil about anyone, to live in peace, and to be gentle and polite to all people.” (Titus 3:1-2, NCV)

“[Love] does not behave rudely.” (I Cor. 13:5a)

Make an effort today to see that the love you show to others around you includes the quality of politeness.

Alan Smith