Proverbs 15:1 – 2
A soft and gentle and thoughtful answer turns away wrath, but harsh and painful and careless words stir up anger. The tongue of the wise speaks knowledge that is pleasing and acceptable,
Recently in the news, it was reported that an 18 year old young man got into an argument with a 12 year old boy. There was an exchange of words. The end result was the 12 year old being shot and killed by the 18 year old.
An employee was with a couple of other co-workers talking about their supervisor. The employee made some negative comments about her boss. The following week the employee noticed that the supervisor started distancing herself from that employee. All of her supervisor’s responses to her were short, direct and cold.
Two children of a single mother got into an argument over whose turn it was to take out the trash. Before the mother could intervene, she heard one child tell the other, “Mama was right! You’re just like daddy…lazy! You’ll amount to nothing!!”
Lives have been lost, careers damaged, and self-esteem ruined. All due to words.
Words are powerful. They have the power to create and destroy. That’s why Proverbs has so much to say about our words and gives us strong warnings to be cautious about what we say.
Lately, have your words been thoughtful or harmful? Positive or negative? Uplifting or destructive? Wise or foolish? The price of careless words can be more than you want to pay.