The Words of Your Mouth

I had just visited a long-time member of
the little church I pastored, and a few days later I was called to re-visit the
family to make preparations for his funeral.
Whenever I meet with families and friends to prepare for a funeral, I
hear wonderful stories about the person who has died.  Without having to ask very many questions, I
quickly learn what it was like to grow up with the person, how they met their
spouse, their favorite hobby, and what they were like as a parent, along with a
host of other details.    

I hear the funny stories that have been
told and retold countless times at family gatherings.  And I start to see how God’s grace developed
in the person’s life and led them to live the way they did.  But at some point, the inevitable stories pop
up that I would not want to share from the pulpit; disappointments, failures to
communicate what was really happening, and frustrations over choices with
larger implications.

I always do my best to sit and listen
patiently, knowing that it is important for the friends and family to
experience their grief in different ways.  But when it comes time to craft the words that
will be shared at the funeral, I do my best to include the truth about the
person’s life, while emphasizing the details that help to build up the
community of faith.

Paul wrote to the church in Ephesus about
what it means to live in community, “Let no evil come out of your mouths, but
only what is useful for building up, as there is need, so that your words may
give grace to those who hear.” (Ephesians 4:29)

As people of God, we need to be very careful about what
we allow to come out of our mouth.  As my dear momma used to say, “If you don’t have
nothing good to say, keep your mouth shut”!  Words spoken out of our mouth are very important for the
simple fact that they speak what is in our hearts.   

In Luke 6:45  we
are told, “The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his
heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his
heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.”

We tend to emphasize and remember our
problems, but as Christians we are called to speak in a way that benefits the
people around us.  In our everyday lives
we have opportunities to share kind words toward others such as complimenting
their work or affirming their character.  Whatever we can do to live in such a way that
we build others up, rather than breaking them down, will allow us to fully live
into God’s kingdom.

Is God receiving glory from the words that you speak out
of your mouth?  There are two types of people. Those that are wise and
those that are foolish.  Where do you
place yourself?  Among the wise or the foolish? 

Which one of these does the words of your mouth produce?

Can God change your life?

God has made it possible for you
to know Him, and experience an amazing
change in your own life.

Discover how you can find peace
with God.