In Psalm 19: 13-14 David says,
13 Keep your servant also from willful sins;
may they not rule over me.
Then I will be blameless,
innocent of great transgression.
14 May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart
be pleasing in your sight,
Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer. NIV
Then, 1000 years later here’s what Jesus says about our words.
In Matthew 15: 10-20 Jesus responds to the Pharisees’ comments about his disciples not traditionally washing their hands before they ate.
10 Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen and understand. 11 What goes into someone’s mouth does not defile them, but what comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them.”
12 Then the disciples came to him and asked, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?”
13 He replied, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by the roots. 14 Leave them; they are blind guides. If the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.”
15 Peter said, “Explain the parable to us.”
16 “Are you still so dull?” Jesus asked them. 17 “Don’t you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? 18 But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them. 19 For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. 20 These are what defile a person; but eating with unwashed hands does not defile them.” NIV
Even with our advanced civilization, when it comes to the tongue, things sure have not changed much in the last 3000 years!
In To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus Finch says, “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view – until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.”
I cannot count how many times I have heard people judge someone before they learn the facts, or understand their actions, or feel what they are going through or have gone through in life.
Before they genuinely think about the words that will come out of their mouths, they speak
I have been judged this way.
And, shamefully, I have done some of this judging myself.
We think we know so much about someone, when in reality we only know a very small portion of what we think we know of another person. Or of why things happen the way they do. Humanity really is complicated.
Yes, there are some genuinely wicked people out there. I have had the misfortune and displeasure of having to deal with some of them.
But then, there are those who act, speak, and react out of deep stress, hurt, sorrow, grief, fear, distress, or other painfully pressing emotions, mainly because of something terrible that has happened in their life.
And sometimes, they aren’t even aware of how they come across.
With our words we can create a beautifully positive world and bless those we encounter, or we can create a poisonous, negative world around ourselves, and infect those who cross our paths.
What we say and how we speak of others reveals the content of our hearts. Whether we are filled with love, joy, peace, forgiveness, patience, self-control, kindness or anger, unforgiveness, selfishness, gossip, betrayal, resentment, and bitterness.
We must guard our mouths, as emotions and thoughts can often quickly spill out in the form of words before we can stop them.
Above all, we must also forgive those who use damaging words against us. Biblical forgiveness literally means to CANCEL A DEBT!
After all, isn’t that how God sees us and what He does for us. And aren’t we supposed to walk in His footsteps?
Without love and kindness, forgiveness, and an awful lot of grace; it would be nearly impossible to like anyone once you get to really know them and it would be just as nearly impossible for anyone to like us after they experience the real us.
Please Lord, help us find the root to the hurtful words we speak. Heal our hearts, let our words be fruitful, words worthy of a child of the King of Glory.
Found image on Facebook.
By ~ Elizabeth Yalian 2014 ©http://hiseyeisonthissparrow.com.
HIS EYE IS ON THIS SPARROW TOO Still Learning to Lean on God 
I learned the hard way that words can be like the fluff we blew off the dandelions when I was a kid…impossible to regather once we’ve used our breath to spread them. This was a costly lesson.
Hey, how’re you two doing? Still looking at a possible move?
\o/
So nice to hear from you Tammy, how’s your music going?
I really agree with you on the dandelion “fluff.” Once it spreads, it’s never the same. In fact, that fluff is actually a bunch of seeds, and I believe these seeds seem to plant themselves in the recipients hearts and grow. If only they remembered the good stuff we did with such zeal! Sticking feet in mouth for me is a costly lesson also, but at least we are learning, right? 🙂
We are fine. He dreams of moving to the coast every night, I am sure of it.
We would have to sell our house first. I am not even sure we will list it this year. We have some work we would need to do to it first. I pray God brings someone to knock on our door who wants to buy it. Sounds crazy, but I have heard it happened several times to other people.
I have been working really hard on my book. Writing a book, wow, is that ever a chore and a challenge at once! I thought I would have had it out by now, but I keep revising and revising and revising, each time it gets better, I hope! Cannot wait till I’m done! 🙂
We’ve had offers for our home before, so it’s not out of the question – and certainly a big “yes” to moving if it happens to you.
Yeah, writing a book is a huge chore. At first it’s fun, but by the end it takes discipline and determination. I’m impressed that you’re taking time to revise. I didn’t have time to do that with my little book – and haven’t taken time to do it since it was published. The idea makes me break out in an emotional rash!
May the words come together perfectly, the thoughts be conveyed clearly, and God be glorified through it all! 🙂
\o/
As He wills. We would like to sell.
All I have done for the past three months is revise, revise, and revise!!!
Blessings!
I couldn’t agree with you more. We can say some terrible things and cause irreparable damage. I have judged in the past and still do but I try my hardest not to. I really think if we took the time to see others from their eyes, we would feel and act so differently and definitely speak another way. Thank you for these words! – Amy 😀
So true, Amy. It’s definitely a hard habit to break and I believe we have all been guilty at one time or another. You are right, looking at someone’s life from their perspective would soften our thoughts and our tongues a bit, even more so if we want to be Christ like. It really hit me one day what Jesus said In Mathew 12:36, “But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken.” Thankfully, our Lord is a God of grace and forgiveness when we come to Him.” Elizabeth 🙂