Words ... we use them hourly, daily ... they often fly off of our tongues without much forethought. I wonder if we really thought about them before speaking, how that might change what we say. Words have the power of life and death. That is a responsibility we/I should take a lot more seriously than we often do.
I was talking with my therapist last week about this. We were talking through things that have been said to me in the past and how I can't forget them and how, not only hurtful they were/are, but also how they control me still today. They control what I think and feel about myself. It is no wonder that God speaks so much about the tongue and being slow to speak ... and to anger ... as this is what often is the precursor to our hurtful words.
I think this can be true of words NOT spoken as well. A simple hello, or how are you doing, or an I love you, goes a long way to soothe a spirit. Words not spoken can often have just as much of a hurtful impact as those spoken. Or maybe that's just me.
How do we combat the negative words? Well, it isn't easy and there is no quick fix. I like quick fixes and don't like the work it takes to change the effects of words spoken in anger or spite. My therapist often reminds me that it isn't going to be all better after one week of work. Well, that's annoying, to be honest!
Think about that: one word spoken in anger often takes a lifetime to work through. It requires "changing the script". Here's what happens: we play those words over and over in our minds and they become a part of who we are or what we feel and think about ourselves. It becomes second nature. We often become those words.
Re-writing the script is hard work. It requires time and effort. It requires speaking truth to ourselves over and over again, truth that is found in God's word and truth that is just a reality of life. Maybe that truth is that the other person is incapable of something. Maybe it is the truth of "hurt people, hurt people. More than those things, it is the truth about what God says about me. I/we are made in the image of God Himself - He pursues us - He loves us - He is mindful of us - He searches and knows us - we are the apple of His eye - He is concerned about us, and we are His cherished bride.
Replace hurtful words with a different script and speak that script to ourselves when those hurtful words pop into our minds - because they will. Why? Because Satan would rather have us stuck in those words than living a life of freedom found in the truth of God's love for us.
"The tongue of the wise brings healing" Prov. 12:18
Count to 10 before speaking .....
