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."

To Ponder

Of all the things we do each day, few are as constant or has serious consequences, as the words we speak. We tend to talk without thinking. We comment, react, respond, and fill silence, often without pausing to consider what our words are actually doing to the people who receive them.

But our reading today gives us a challenge:  before you speak, ask yourself is this building someone up, or tearing them down?

The word translated unwholesome literally carries the image of something rotten:  fruit that has gone bad, something that once had value but has since become harmful. Think about it, our words can do exactly this. They can spoil the atmosphere of a room, damage the confidence of a person, and linger in a heart long after the moment has gone. We have all carried words spoken carelessly over us for years. And if we are honest, we have all spoken words we wish we could take back.

Our reading doesn't simply tell us what not to say. It tells us what to say instead. Words that are helpful. Words that build up. Words carefully shaped around the needs of the person in front of us. Perhaps asking: “what does this person actually need to hear from me right now?”

Knowing what to do with our words is a clear expression of a life transformed by Jesus. You don't need to wait for a grand opportunity to make a difference. Every conversation is one. Every word is a choice, to rot or to restore, to wound or to build.

Today, let your words be the kind that people carry with them  not as a burden, but as a gift.

Prayer

Lord, I confess that I speak far too quickly and listen far too little. Too often my words serve myself , my frustration, my opinion, my need to be heard rather than the person standing in front of me. Forgive me for the careless words, the cutting remarks, the complaints and criticisms that have torn down rather than built up.

Before I speak, help me to pause and ask whether what I am about to say is helpful, needed, and kind. Remind me that the people around me are carrying things I cannot always see, and that my words have the power to either add to their weight or lighten it. May those who listen to me today be better for it and may the words of my mouth always be pleasing to you. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Today's devotion is written by Pr Nich Kitchen, LifeWay Epping