Words

“Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.” Psalm 19:14

“A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” Proverbs 15:1

“But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth.” Colossians 3:8

This morning, after reading Psalms, Chapter 19 and keying in on verse 14, I was reminded of how powerful our words can be. It wasn’t a new revelation to me, but rather a little nudge to park here for a just moment.

“Let the words of my mouth……” Our choice of how we use words makes such a difference in the lives of others as well as our own. Words can tear down and they can build up. Words can wound or they can heal. Words spoken harshly to another can certainly be forgiven, but they are not easily forgotten. We must always strive to choose our words carefully. I certainly need these reminders of how influential the words I speak and the manner in which I speak them can affect others each day.

Because we are all human, we’ve been on both sides of this equation. We’ve been hurt by others, and no doubt we’ve wounded others with our own harsh words, perhaps spoken on an impulse or when reacting defensively to something that’s been said and has hurt us deeply.

How do we go forth with kind words that build others up? We do it day by day, trusting our good, good Father to arm us with His strength and the love of Jesus in our hearts.

Every morning and night, for several years, I have prayed Psalm 51:10–“create in me a clean heart, O God and renew a right spirit within me.” Sometimes I fail, but the desire of my heart is that I would always focus on Him; that my heart will be clean before Him; and that I will allow His Spirit to work in my life so that His love will shine forth from me in such a way that at the end of the day, He will have found me faithful in all things. So whether I use a lot of words or just a few, I pray that my heart will always be centered on Him. May this be your prayer today, as well.