Years ago, I read a poster in a colleague’s office that read, “Lord, make my words sweet today, for tomorrow I may have to eat them.”
The words we use convey messages. That’s a given. However, what many people don’t realize is one of the messages conveyed is what is in your heart. Words reveal what is sometimes hidden in the depths of your heart.
Words express kindness and consideration. They help build up and encourage. They convey the fact that you care about someone or about a situation.
Words also express hatred. They can demean, tear down and injure. Callous words stir feelings ranging from hostility to devastation.
Someone who utters harsh words may try to explain them away rather than take responsibility for them. “I was just kidding.” “I was just joking around.” “It was just locker room banter.” However, the moment the words are out, the damage is already done. They cannot be taken back.
Just grab a tube of toothpaste and squeeze out some toothpaste. Now, put it back in cleanly. It can’t be done. And the more you try, the bigger the mess.
Jesus said, “It is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but it is what comes out of the mouth that defiles. What comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this is what defiles. For out of the heart come evil intentions, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander.”
Do you truly pay attention to the words you use? Do your words build up or tear down? Do you speak to a person one way, and then talk about them in another?
Do your words speak derogatorily about a person because of gender, race and political position, denominational or religious preference?
During this presidential campaign, I have heard Christians speak words about the candidates and those that support them that are truly shocking. The vehemence, the level of uninformed rhetoric, the spreading of rumors, the excuses for poor behavior have been appalling.
Shame on us! I thought our Lord taught us better than that!
It’s okay to disagree with a candidate. However, that does not give permission to slander, belittle or tear down. That is stooping to the levels of childishness.
Don’t let your words condemn you. Speak kindly to — and about — others.
Remember the old saying, “If you can’t say something nice about someone, don’t say anything at all.”
The Rev. Mark Broadhead is pastor at Laurel Hill Presbyterian Church and First Presbyterian Church of Crestview.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Speak kindly to others