
Frank Luntz is the the guy you see after the debate. He’s the one in the room with 15-20 people, asking them questions and getting their reactions.
Over the last 20+ years, he has become one of the country’s most respected communication and political polling professionals. Companies and campaigns regularly turn to him to understand the wants, fears and hopes of people is a technique he pioneered called the “instant response focus group.”
As we continue our journey through James today, I found myself reminded of a book Mr. Luntz wrote entitled Words That Work. More specifically, I recalled the impact even further just the subtitle had on me:
It’s not what you say, it’s what people hear.
Permit me to allow Mr. Luntz’s words to speak for themselves:
You can have the best message in the world, but the person on the receiving end will always understand it through the prism of his or her own emotions, preconceptions, prejudices and preexisting beliefs.
It’s not enough to be correct or reasonable – or even brilliant. The key to successful communication is to take the imaginative leap of stuffing yourself right into the listener’s shoes to know what they are thinking and feeling in the deepest recesses of their mind and heart.
How that person perceives what you say is even more real, at least in a practical sense, than how you perceive yourself.
Isn’t this what Jesus did? Read Philippians 2:5-11 & Hebrews 4:14-16.
Be certain, God is speaking to you today. We can trust His words – His Word – because He literally stuffed Himself into our shoes … or sandals, as the case may be.