Sticks and Stones

"Sticks and stones may break my bones 

but words will never hurt me."

That saying may be one of the biggest lies I have ever heard.

Words can hurt.

Words have power to damage and destroy.

Sometimes those hurts can last a life time. 

But words also have the power to heal and bring hope.

Let's think about it.

God spoke the world into existence.

In Genesis we are told that God said,

 "Let there be...." and there was.

In Proverbs it is said, "The tongue has the power of life and death."

(Proverbs 18:21 NIV)

That is a lot of power found just in spoken words.

Our world is full of hate today.

The words that are being spoken are hateful.

What is really sad is that very often 

it is the words of God's people that are fueling hate. 

As followers of Christ, 

our words should be set apart from the words of the world.

Ephesians 4: 29 says, 

"Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, 

but only what is helpful for building others up 

according to their needs, 

that it may benefit those who listen."

In my job I have an opportunity to speak

 words of encouragement into the lives of many.

What God is revealing to me is that,

 outside of my counseling moments,

in other aspects of my life I am not so careful with my words.

I am not always speaking word of life and truth.

My prayer for myself is that 

I not be a person that speaks words of destruction into the lives of others, 

but to speak words of love that inspire change and dreams. 

What kind of words are you saying to others?

Are you speaking words of hope or hurt?