Mark 7:36-37: Our Words
Wednesday, August 16, 2023
He’s done it all and done it well. He gives hearing to the deaf, speech to the speechless.
God has gifted us with the gift of words. Today we reflect on the purpose of this gift and the use of our own words in our daily lives.
“Watch your words diligently. Words have such great power to bless or to wound. When you speak carelessly or negatively, you damage others as well as yourself. This ability to verbalize is an awesome privilege, granted only to those I created in my image. You need help in wielding this mighty power responsibly.
“Though the world applauds quick-witted retorts, My instructions about communication are quite different: Be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry. Ask My Spirit to help you whenever you speak . . . If [people around you] are silent, pray before speaking to them. If they are talking, pray before responding. These are split-second prayers, but they put you in touch with My Presence. In this way, your speaking comes under the control of My Spirit. As positive speech patterns replace your negative ones, the increase in your joy will amaze you”. (Young 126)
In her wonderful devotional, JESUS CALLING, Sarah Young bases daily reflections on scripture. She brings us wisdom that we might want to use in a modern climate of insults and one-liner sound bites are meant for broadcast news. Jesus comes to as THE WORD of the loving presence that created us in an image of goodness and compassion. When we take in the words that flood around us it is so frequently difficult to distinguish truth from lie; but what is easier to distinguish is ego versus selflessness, greed versus generosity, false fruit versus abundant fruit. When we are confused about whose words we are to believe or reject, Young presents us with a distillation of God’s message: we must rely on the Spirit for guidance, we must depend on Jesus as an example, and we must trust in the Creator who has created us in God’s image in and for love alone.
Tomorrow, healing the paralyzed man.
Young, Sarah. Jesus Calling. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2004. Print.
Image from: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/power-words-reyaz-mohemmad/?trk=mp-reader-card
JESUS CALLING image from: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=KsPNZ_EY1BgC&source=productsearch&utm_source=HA_Desktop_US&utm_medium=SEM&utm_campaign=PLA&pcampaignid=MKTAD0930BO1&gl=US&gclid=CNj9qrvFpc4CFUGFNwodH9QC2w&gclsrc=ds
The Noontimes 