Words Matter

-

“People of the Word believe that words matter, because it was the Word Himself who created matter. What we say, and how we say it, matters. Words create actual matter - for good or for evil - in the world. Our words actually speak our own kind of worlds into being. Destructive words make our world just that - and edifying words can build the world into more of the loving Kingdom of God. Please, Lord, make it true of all the people of the Word: Only speak words that make souls stronger.” -Ann Voskamp Our words matter today more than ever. . . Not just our words when we speak, but also when we write, or post. I’ve been not just disappointed, but grieved over some things I’ve seen, especially from people who claim the name of Christ. I’m going to be candid here. Because of the words and behavior of some “Christians,” I find myself embarrassed to categorize myself as such. I’ve talked to many of you who feel the same. Today I will let the scriptures speak for me, as I share just a small portion of what the Bible has to say about it. Feel free to insert the words “post” or “comment” where appropriate. “Take control of what I say, O Lord, and guard my lips.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭141:3‬ “There is more hope for a fool than for someone who speaks without thinking.” Proverbs‬ ‭29:20‬ “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭19:14‬ ‭ “Kind words are like honey, sweet to the soul and healthy for the body.” ‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭16:24‬ “A gentle answer deflects anger, but harsh words make tempers flare.” ‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭15:1‬ ‭ “The tongue can bring death or life; those who love to talk will reap the consequences.” ‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭18:21‬ ‭ “And I tell you this, you must give an account on judgment day for every idle word you speak. The words you say will either acquit you or condemn you.” ‭‭Matthew‬ ‭12:36-37‬ ‭ “And among all the parts of the body, the tongue is a flame of fire. It is a whole world of wickedness, corrupting your entire body. It can set your whole life on fire, for it is set on fire by hell itself.” ‭‭James‬ ‭3:6‬ May our words reflect the love and compassion of our Creator.‭


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Should Someone Call an Exorcist?

-
Image
Last Friday I went bowling with some of my family. I am aware of my low skill level, so I remained humble throughout the first game, and surprisingly finished in 1st place!  The second game began and I just knew I would dominate even more. I may not have been quite as humble. I was last on the list to go. I stood up and approached my ball with confidence. I picked it up, set my eye on the center arrow painted on the lane, then took a few quick steps forward just as I had before.  As I took my last step, I swung my arm backward, then forward, and fell flat on my face. Actually, flat is not entirely accurate. I’m pretty sure every one of my limbs flew in a different direction, and the position of my head may have had folks wondering if they should call an exorcist. I also seemed to be temporarily blinded from the fall but could hear my ball bouncing its way down the lane. Let’s pause for a moment of prayer. The problem was that I had stepped over the foul line into the lane— 1. Not reali
Read more

The Complexity of Prayer

-
Image
Have you ever considered the complexity of prayer? Have you ever had something you needed to pray about, but you just couldn’t bring yourself to talk to God about whatever the issue was? I have experienced that many times. I will call it “Prayer paralysis.” Prayer paralysis happens when you are afraid of any answer God might give you. If He says no, then you might feel bad, or sad, or even angry. If He says yes, then your fear factor increases because you just don’t think you can handle what a “Yes” entails (which essentially means that you don’t trust Him). So instead of revealing your lack of trust (Like seriously, you don’t think He knows? ), you just don’t pray. It’s kind of like when you were a little kid, and you would sit still and close your eyes, thinking that it would make you invisible. God already knows our fears of failure, self-pride, and even our trust issues, so we might as well just go ahead and lay it all at His feet. There’s another kind of prayer paralysis that I ha
Read more

Go Deeper

-
Image
  Anyone struggling with anxiety? I have struggled with it quite a bit. Then, I realize that forgetting to bring all of my anxiety-inducing problems to God, is a big part of the problem. Yesterday I talked about living in endurance mode. Part of that is taking all of the difficult things, and trying to wait them out.  If I really think about it, I may have subconsciously believed that struggling is just part of the journey and that I need to suck it up, because Jesus went through way more than I ever will.    But, “ Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” (Matt. 11:28)  He never intended for us to hold onto them. Sometimes we don’t bother saying anything to God because, well, He knows what’s happening. He can change it if He wants to. So we sit paralyzed—enduring! Is that familiar to anyone? Though He could whisk our struggles away at any time, part of the journey, part of our relationship with the Creator is rooted in commu
Read more