How do we talk to the people we love; our children, our spouse, our parents, our friends? What about our co-workers and other people we encounter daily? What are the things we talk about with people in just normal conversation…idle chit chat? The weight of our words may mean more than we think…
Death and life are in the power of the tongue (Proverbs 18:21). Okay, those are strong words to start things off! What goes into someone’s mouth does not defile them, but what comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them (Matthew 15:11). If you believe in the authority of the Bible then apparently, what we say actually does matter.
How many times have you said, “you’re killing me?” What about telling your kids, “you’re driving me nuts!” How about all the things you’ve said to your spouse in a heated argument. We take the importance of our words for granted, at least I always have. The Lord, however, talks a lot about the implications that come along with the idle words flowing from our mouths, or that it reveals what’s really in our hearts.
My entire point comes down to this…are we speaking life and love over the people we love and even ourselves, or are we speaking death and destruction? Are we building the people we love up or tearing them down with our words? Are we encouraging, supporting, loving, and careful with our words, or are we complaining, gossiping, criticizing, and cursing?
What if instead of using our words to complain about our rough day and the difficult things we may be facing we instead decided to talk about all of the blessings we’ve been given in our lives? Declare greatness for your future and the future of your children! For me, the first step was to just start listening to things that were coming out of my mouth, and let me tell you, that was eye opening.
As Christians, we are called to speak the truth in love(Ephesians 4:15). Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear (Ephesians 4:29). Gracious words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body (Proverbs 16:24).
Let’s start saying to our children, our spouses, and our family what we want for their lives; health, happiness, and love. Let’s rely on those promises from the Word of God and trust in Him. We may not fully understand the weight of our words, but Jesus would never lead us astray; if these are His instructions it’s for our protection and well-being. We all want the absolute best for the people we love, so it’s our responsibility to use our words, faith, and prayer to lift them up!
Everything in existence today began with words; His words, “let there be light.”
Here are some great books to read about the topic!
Sarah Elizabeth Hiltney
Sarah lives in the heartland of Missouri and enjoys writing, spending time with her husband and their over-active rescue dog. She is an artist at heart and you can find her crafting, baking, spending time at her family farm, or studying her favorite book, The Bible! ♥
I absolutely love this article. This is so true and very important to understand as believers.
Aleida recently posted…4 Ways to Have Victory Over Your Thoughts
Sarah, this is a good reminder of what our speech should look like. You are so right. We often forget that our words hold so much power. We are so quick to speak without measuring what we are about to say. Thanks for this! – Amy
http://stylingrannymama.com/
My goodness my mouth gets me in trouble. Words come out before I think about them. I’m praying about this a lot and trying to take a deep breath so I can speak life into my family!
Maria Hass recently posted…The ADHD Friendly Church
I need to work on this with myself and my kids. We are to speak the truth IN LOVE. Sometimes we forget that love part!
Speaking life, and this is especially important for children because the way we talk to them becomes the way they feel and talk to themselves!
We are very intentional about speaking encouragement to our children and each other, but in the heat of the moment, it is definitely a challenge.
Heather Hart recently posted…5 Ways to Read More Books (even when you’re busy)
Proverbs 18:21 is SUCH an important reminder about the power of the tongue!
Andrea recently posted…Greater Is The God That Is In You – And No Other!
Great post. We need to uplift and encourage not tear someone down
This such a great article. Thank you for sharing this awesome verses here.
Thanks so much! We need them, don’t we! : )
: ) Thanks for stopping by!
Love this! So true! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks Jess!