Proverbs chapter 15 of The Holy Bible instructs us on the POWER of our words., saying they have the ability to build up or tear down the spirit of others.Proverbs 18:21 says: "the power of life and death is in the tongue".These are words I have hidden in my heart as one who loves to connect with others through words.
As a matter of fact I did not realize how deeply "hidden" these words were until speaking with an older colleague of mine the other day. As I went on and on about a particular topic he stopped me and asked "may I point out something to you in love"? Of course I thought, okay here we go, that's just what people say before they speak things that are anything but loving. But what I said was "sure".
He went on to say" have you noticed how many times you said "have to" while you were talking?. I said" well no I guess not" and thought what a weird question. He went on to say
" it sounds as if you have totally forgotten that God gave us choice". Before I could respond to my instinct to defend my words, I thought about it, that was his perception of my words but by no means was it the intent of my words. I explained "oh no, I absolutely realize God's grace in giving us the ability to make choices". What I meant by have to is an acknowledgement that a choice has already been made and now it is time to apply action to that choice. You see to choose to be a better communicator in your relationships with others, yet never speak your needs, desires, expectations, and concerns to those you are in relationship with, makes your choice powerless but once you add your words to that choice you have the POWER to change the relationship.
What I learned from my colleague on that day is this: people are listening to what you say. The intent behind your words can often be misread when the focus is the words themselves, so be mindful what you say. Consider the POWER of the tongue when speaking to others. We have the ability to build up or tear down spirits strictly with our WORDS.
About Me
- life answers
- Long Beach, CA, United States
- Maisha is a registered Marriage and Family Therapist Intern with Turning Point Counseling. She has a passion for helping people achieve wholeness through acceptance and loving themselves as they are understanding that God created us all with awesome potential. Growth and change can be very difficult, but “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” Philippians4:13. She believes that the foundation of achieving and maintaining healthy relationships is congruent communication. Maisha has worked with a culturally and clinically diverse client base that includes: couples, substance abuse, intimacy issues, and domestic violence. She also worked with problems such as anger management, parenting, depression, anxiety, assertiveness/self esteem, grief and loss, self harm, divorce, family, illness, and disabilities.
