The Lord instructs us on the power of the tongue hundreds of times in His Word. Yesterday I talked about how our tongues can be used to bless people, but our tongues may also be used for evil. Day 4 of my "21 Days to More Godly Communication" comes from Psalms.
"Keep your tongue from evil And your lips from speaking deceit." -Psalm 34:13
Our words are almost real things. They can be used to bless or to curse. Speaking evil can hurt someone even more than physical harm. As a kid, you probably heard the phrase, "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me." Well, I'm here to shatter that illusion.
Words can be used as a sword to cut the soul of a person. You can almost mortally wound a person with your tongue. With your lips you may destroy a person's reputation or his spirit. That's because words are almost living breathing things that, once spoken, have a life of their own.
Martha has it in for Johnny. Once Martha tells Mildred that Johnny is no good, it's in her mind, coloring her perceptions and often outweighing any good Johnny may do in Mildred's eyes.
Furthermore, once Mildred believes Johnny is no good, she's more likely to tell Mabel. Now Mabel's view of Johnny is tarnished. Mabel is much more likely to tell her friends and so on and so on until along comes Mary who is trying to make up her mind objectively about Johnny. She thinks to herself, "He seems nice to me, but I've only known him a short time! Mildred, Mabel and their friends have known Johnny a very long time. If so many people apparently have a problem with him, I guess Johnny really is no good."
While Martha may have knowingly lied about Johnny, Mildred and the others may have been unwittingly speaking deceit against Johnny. Sometimes keeping our tongues from evil and our mouths from speaking deceit is a simply a matter of doing what's right. Sometimes it's more a matter of discernment. Either way, if we strive to live by Psalm 34:13, we will be more likely to fulfill it.
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JoJo Tabares holds a degree in Speech Communication, but it is her humorous approach to communication skills which has made her a highly sought-after Christian speaker and writer. Her articles appear in homeschool publications, such as Homeschool Enrichment Magazine and The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, which also endorses her Say What You Mean curricula. You can also find JoJo on web sites such as Crosswalk.com and Dr.Laura.com. For more information on communication FUNdamentals and Christian-based communication studies for the whole family, please visit http://www.ArtofEloquence.com
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