Words are Powerful

“Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me.”  I’ve heard this chant at least hundreds of times if I’ve heard it once.  It’s not a totally bad thing to teach children I suppose.  I, for one, was relentlessly teased as a kid and really; as an adult even more.  It doesn’t bother me all that much when people laugh at me, and yet, does that make it okay?  I wonder though, are we inadvertently teaching children that it’s okay to make fun of people as long as we don’t injure them physically?  After all, “Words can’t hurt other people so go ahead and say anything you want, its okay.”

What about adults?  Do we get to say anything we want about people?  Does this apply to gossip as well?  Let me remind us all of something - gossip is a sin.  That’s all there is to it.  Slander, gossip, back biting, they’re all sin.  So is joking around at other people’s expense.  Paul teaches us in Ephesians 4:29 “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.”  Later in Ephesians 5:4 Paul tells us we should not ever be part of obscene stories or course joking.  In verse 10 Paul says that we are to “carefully determine what pleases the Lord.” 

I can think of a couple of people in my life who exemplify how we should all be living when it comes to our speech and daily talk.  Jesus said that by our words we will be acquitted or by our words we will be condemned.  (Matthew 12:37)  Let us choose our words carefully and with prayerful thought from this day forward so as to please the One in whom we claim to follow.  We, as Christians, should have the most beautiful and loveliest speech coming from our mouths.  Jesus said that it is from the abundance of the heart that the mouth speaks.  So if we are speaking nothing but filth and garbage, what does that say about our heart?  If we are snapping at our children for every little thing they do, laughing at others, and just plain being disrespectful with or without words, we need to reexamine our hearts to see if we really are followers of Christ, or just playing games with salvation. 

Growing Pains

Ever wonder why we have the phrase ‘growing pains’?  No? Well that’s probably because we all know what they are.  Even if you haven’t experienced them yourself I’m sure you know of someone who has.  I had them really bad in my legs as I went from a little kid to a very young man at fifteen and shot up to 6’2” rather quickly.  My son comes in my bedroom every once in a while at night crying saying that his legs hurt.

I say all this to make a point.  Do you think we can grow in Christ and mature as believers without pain?  I’m not so sure we do.  We can learn a lot by reading our Bibles and spending time with other believers, but ultimately it is through trials, pain, and hurt that we grow.  Job, Samson, Abraham, Jacob, Peter, James and John, all learned lessons that they needed to know to grow by… sorry… pain.  And so it’s no different with us.  The writer of Hebrews tells us in chapter 12:6, “For the LORD disciplines those he loves, and he punishes each one he accepts as his child.” And he continues to teach us skipping down to verse 11 that, “No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it's painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.”  So don’t get too discouraged when things seem to be going wrong – keep you head up (looking to Jesus) and know that, “He is working all things together for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28)

If you’re going through a tough time, whether it’s your own fault or not, I can promise you something… If you look to Jesus Christ as your ONLY answer, things will work out for the best.  It may take awhile, but if Jesus is what you're seeking, then it will!  He is your creator, and He created you for a specific purpose that He wants you to fulfill.  When you discover what that is, you will see Him working in your life in the most awesome ways, yes, even in the painful times.