Saturday, April 2, 2011
What We Say.
I was reading Proverbs 15 and noticed how many times he spoke about what we say.
I know I have written about this subject before, but for me it is a very important one.
"A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger."
When I was first married, if my husband yelled at me, I yelled right back at him. But then the fight would escalate into a shouting match. Nothing was resolved and feelings were hurt. We have both learned by God's grace to curb our anger and give gentle answers. We rarely fight now, and when we do it is over in seconds.
"A soothing tongue is the tree of life, but perversion in it crushes the spirit."
This verse tells the power of our words. Imagine that what we say can be like the tree of life in the garden of Eden. Amazing!
Then there is the opposite of life and what we say can crush someones spirit. What a terrible responsibility!
"The heart of the righteous ponders how to answer, but the mouth of the wicked pours out evil things."
I am trying to learn to think before I speak and write my blogs. I don't want to say anything to discourage or hurt someone. Especially when someone asks for advice, I need to take time to think and pray before answering. This is a goal to work towards.
The wicked say evil things. It is hard to listen to or read some of the things people say. Still, we must love people who do evil, for they are loved by God and are just doing what comes naturally to them. I have spoken evil things myself and I'm sorry about that. Even when we are Christians, in a moment of rage we can say something evil. But thank God he is a forgiving God.
"How delightful is a timely word."
This is so true. Many times people have helped me by their kind and timely words. The Bible itself is full of delightful comfort and help.
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8 comments:
Hi Belle: These are truly wonderful words of wisdom! We have all fallen short and only by the Grace of God can we be forgiven and changed. Words are powerful lets choose them carefully.
You are right, the book of Proverbs has so many "gems" about controlling the mouth (the ones about the quarrelsome wife always makes me think indeed!) There are lots of Scripture about controlling the tongue indeed! I agreee, we need to use words for encouragement and uplifting rather than discouragement; we need to be very sensitive about what we say (or type in the case of blogs :)
betty
Thanks so much for your comments. I always regret it when I say something that is not kind and loving. I guess that is why these verses mean so much to me.
I dropped into your other blog vial the A-Z chalenge - but this looks just as inviting!
:-)
SueH I refuse to go quietly!
Isn't it grand to know that He sends the words we need to hear at the exact moment they are needed!! He is SOOOo awesome!
Reminds me of a couple of lines of a poem I wrote entitled "I Saw the Face of Jesus." The lines are "Thank you, gentle God, for loving me as I am, through the ones who know me best, my family."
Sue- It has been great to meet so many new people through the A to Z challenge. I'm so glad you came over here too!
Betty- It is wonderful how God gives us the right words to say when we ask Him!
Clarence- It is great when our family loves and accepts us just as we are. It is an unusual and beautiful thing in this world.
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