The Things We Say

I am always talking about the power of words, so I was pleased when I opened my email today and found that one of my sisters had forwarded me this recovery meditation.

:~*~:. .:~*~:. .:~*~:. .:~*~:. .:~*~:. .:~*~:
"Handle them carefully ...
for words have more power than atom bombs."
- Pearl Strachan Hurd
:~*~:. .:~*~:. .:~*~:. .:~*~:. .:~*~:. .:~*~:

A friend wrote to me tonight about the "healing power of words."  I began to think about that and she was right. Words can truly heal. I thought back to times in my life when the right word at the right time by the right person made an enormous difference in my life. I also thought of the times when
words devastated me.

Many times I get busy and don't think about what I'm going to say and words just come out.  In the "busyness" of the moment, I don't realize that my words could have a double meaning.  It is afterwards ... many times days afterwards .... that I realize my choice of words was inappropriate. We speak and listen to tens of millions of words in our lifetime.  Perhaps, we need to weigh the words we use more carefully. I hope, however, that I don't ever find myself saying words to others that I don't mean or out of fear restrict words that need to be said.

Although this British politician of the 1930s, Pearl Strachan Hurd, said that "words have more power than atom bombs," there is something that I find even more powerful. Silence.
Silence when there should be words can hurt. Silence when someone should have the courage to speak harms. I tend to think of silence as the ultimate insult.

And yet some of the most beautiful words ever spoken to me were the silent ones.

ONE DAY AT A TIME . . .
Let me choose my words carefully but not so carefully that I become calous.
Let me use words to heal and not to hurt;
to make things better and not worse;
to express feelings, even negative feelings,
to and about others, kindly ... courageously ... carefully.
Excerpt from "One Day at a Time" Recovery Meditations
© Copyright 2012 THE RECOVERY GROUP

As most of you know, the Scriptures are now my source of all spiritual wisdom and guidance. I am a follower of Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ was "the Word made flesh." John 1:14 Therefore, I follow the Scriptures as the inerrant, infallible Word of God.

The Scriptures are full of cautions about the power of words to do both good and evil, contrasting the destructive power of careless words with the encouraging power of wise and well thought out speech.

"May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer." Psalm 19:14

"They sharpen their tongues like swords and aim cruel words like deadly arrows." Psalm 64:3

"The words of the wicked lie in wait for blood, but the speech of the upright rescues them." Proverbs 12:6

"The words of the reckless pierce like swords, but the tongue of the wise brings healing." Proverbs 12:18

"Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones." Proverbs 16:24

"The one who has knowledge uses words with restraint, and whoever has understanding is even-tempered." Proverbs 17:27

"The words of a gossip are like choice morsels; they go down to the inmost parts." Proverbs 18:8

"The quiet words of the wise are more to be heeded than the shouts of a ruler of fools." Ecclesiastes 9:17

"On the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” Matthew 12:36-37

"The things we do, the things we say
Are gentle rays of hope that touch us all each day
The things we do, the things we say
These are the greatest gifts we'll ever give away"

The Things We Do, by Yolanda Adams