Because so many of the opening Proverbs were about our words my meditations settled on the use and abuse of the tongue. It has been said that the tongue is mightier than the sword and that is certainly true in everyday life. More lives have been maimed by the tongue than the sword. Conversely, more lives are protected and encouraged by the tongue than by the sword or any other weapon/tool.
Words cause laughter and grief or foster hate and love. Think of all the vehicles for words: normal conversation, writings (which include prose and poetry), song and ballad, reporting and journalism be it print/tv/radio/internet. Then there is entertaining words, comedy, theater, etc.
Twitter-140 characters or less- has sparked a revolution. The Protestant Reformation occurred, in part, do to the multiplication of print, thanks to Gutenberg’s printing press, The American revolution was fueled by the writings Thomas Paine and others. I could go on. Words are powerful…
And Proverbs repeatedly instructs us to use our words for good not evil, for building up not tearing down. Consider these Proverbs as you meditate and pray this morning.
A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger (1).
The tongue of the wise commends knowledge, but the mouth of the fool gushes folly (2).
The tongue that brings healing is a tree of life, but a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit (4).
The lips of the wise spread knowledge; not so the hearts of fools (7).
A cheerful look brings joy to the heart, and good news gives health to the bones (30).
Lord, help me today and everyday to use my tongue for good, to speak words of encouragement and cheer, truth and instruction, healing and hope. Help me to use my tongue to spread Your Words of Good News. I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen!
No comments:
Post a Comment