Every Single Word

Proverbs 18:21
Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits.

My husband told our youth a couple of years ago something that stuck with me so profoundly that I share it with as many people as I can.  He said that every single word out of our mouth has the potential to be discouraging or encouraging.  EVERY SINGLE WORD! I believe he got this idea from a book he was reading and I will ask him when he wakes up who that author is but WOW! A word as simple as yes or no can be discouraging! It is all in the way you say it, the inflection in your voice, the expression on your face, the stance your body takes that says so much more than that one word ever could.  I think about the things I have said today and how I said them and am certian I was not encouraging the whole time.  Yet, this should be the goal.  Even when we are correcting a child, a friend, or a co-worker the attitude should be the same, loving and encouraging.  Yet, we are so mean to each other! When did sarcasm become an entire language!?! Joking can be fun and even funny but if we are honest the kind of joking that usually takes place is small jabs at each other followed by a quick "I was only joking!" to make the other person feel as though they are too sensitive instead of us realizing that we are being hurtful.  I came across a verse I read often in Proverbs 26 that says:

Like a madman who throws firebrands, arrows, and death is the man who deceives his neighbor and says, "I am only joking!"

By using hurtful words we are literally throwing death! As my former pastor used to say, if you can't say amen, say ouch! You can say I'm being too harsh but take the time to think about the words spoken to you in the name of joking.  A snide comment about your weight, or your hair, the job you do, the friends you have, the way you see the world.  We belittle each other so often that it has become a way of life.  I believe with all of my heart that when I stand before my Savior he will hold me accountable not only for all of my actions but every careless word I have spoken.  This gives me goosebumps just thinking about all the things I have said in passing that may have hurt others simply because I was not thinking. There is a reason the Bible says the tongue is evil! We have to be paying attention all the time to our mouth. When someone becomes careless with their words it is like saying that they do not care what comes out of their mouth or what it does to those around them. How sad that we as Christians are often the most guilty of this. A Christian friend once told me after I shared this with them that they could never stop being sarcastic because it was too much a part of who they were.  May we never become so set in a way of doing things that we are unable to change and grow.
We all have an area of our speech that needs work. I am often so pessimestic that I feel like I'm choking on my negativity.  As I write this I find myself saddened that I still struggle with this after all these years of seeing God come through in my life and if I am like most I will battle this area most if not all of my life.  God has so much to say to the world through his children about so many things, but especially about how much he loves them.  It is impossible to be loving and hateful at the same time! Are we up to the task? Or will we spend all of our time trying to be witty at the expense of others? I guess what I am saying all boils down to this:

Psalm 19:14
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.