March 27, 2017

Verse for the Week:  “The power of the tongue is life and death —those who love to talk will eat what it produces” (Proverbs 18:21 ISV)

Our words have power. I’ve heard that all my life from my mom, and I used to roll my eyes in annoyance every time she said it.

But oh how true it is. And how right she was.

Do you weigh your words before letting them fly?

Are you careful with what you say? What about how you say it?

Have you ever cut someone down with your words? A friend in the heat of a jealous moment?  A spouse because they forgot to do something that you felt was important? How about with a co-worker over a project that went south? Or worse, one of your kids in a moment of tired insanity?

For me, parenting has taught me some hard lessons about how powerful my words can be. Even more so than any other relationship.

This was especially apparent this past week with my daughter. She’s had her driving temps for a month now but has shown no desire to get behind the wheel until now.

So at the same time she was discovering her readiness for this next phase of life, I was discovering how not ready I was to train her. I know this by my inability to breathe every time she hit the gas, and the intense desire to grab the wheel at every turn.

It was so stressful I think my nerves are still in knots.

I quickly realized the need to manage not only my emotions in this experience but also my words. I held the power to influence how this experience would be remembered and assimilated for her. And yes, it took everything in me to choose my words carefully in the heat of the moment beside her in the car.

Did I always control my tongue? Nope. Not always. But I tried really hard which is pretty much all we can do in our own power.

It seems to me that in these moments when I am angry or tired, scared or stressed, I can use words that tear-down and even cut to the quick of even my strong-willed daughter. I can see it in her eyes and the posture she wears after the mark has been hit.

And then there are those moments where I stop the speeding train before it runs off the track; before the sting of my words shoot like arrows out of my mouth and hit the bullseye of the intended target.

What is that called? Self-control and God can give us the measure of what we need in those moments if we are willing to humble ourselves and submit to His way of using our words with the intention of producing good fruit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (see Galatians 5:22-23).

Like in our picture above showing a Tin Can Telephone—what we say doesn’t always get translated to the other person if we are not careful in what we say and how we say it.

So let’s encourage each other this week to weigh our words before we say them. Let them pass through the filter of God’s Spirit in us. Then and only then can we know we have spoken in the power of love which produces life.

Prayer:

Lord,  I want to be a woman who uses the power you have given me to bless those in my life. To build them up by weighing my words before I speak them and making sure they are full of grace, and hope, and love. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Reflect and Respond:

What kind of fruit are your words producing in your relationships with family, friends, coworkers? What can you do this week to make your words a blessing to those in your path?

Hugs for a great week and remember, you are not alone. Be blessed and let your words be weighty with grace, love, hope and peace.

Dori