"My mouth will speak in praise of the LORD. Let every creature praise his holy name for ever and ever." (Psalm 145:21 NIV)
At the beginning of each new season of the women's Bible study I'm privileged to facilitate, I make the same little speech about verbal participation. I tell my ladies they are welcome to speak up but that they should not feel any pressure to do so, because if they don't, there are plenty of us who are "gifted" at speaking who will fill in the gaps.
And by "us," I mean "me."
H ~ Are my words honest? I'm not talking about "brutal" honesty here. I'm not talking about steamrolling over someone's feelings. I'm talking about being candid about my own messes and the rough edges of my life. Again and again, I've seen how people respond to this kind of honesty, because their lives are messy and rough-edged, too.
U ~ Are my words useful? Are they informative, instructive, clarifying, or practical? Do they serve some good purpose, or am I just saying (or typing) them to take up space?
E ~ Are my words encouraging? Will they build someone up? Will they show them they're not alone? Will they give hope? I think of the line from the song "Home on the Range": "Seldom is heard a discouraging word...." I want to do my part to make a twist on this true: "often is heard an encouraging word."
Oh God, Your name speaks. Help me to make it known.
Those who know me well (okay, fine: at all) know I can talk at the drop of a hat and that I can keep talking until all the hats have dropped.
Because I know this about myself, two of my favorite Bible verses are Proverbs 10:19a (MSG)—"The more talk, the less truth"—and Isaiah 50:4 (NIV)—"The Sovereign LORD has given me a well-instructed tongue, to know the word that sustains the weary."
I've run across several acronyms that can help evaluate if something is worth saying—whether verbally or in a text, email, or social media post. But the other day, God seemed to impress a particular word filter on my mind: do my words have the right "hue"?
Because I know this about myself, two of my favorite Bible verses are Proverbs 10:19a (MSG)—"The more talk, the less truth"—and Isaiah 50:4 (NIV)—"The Sovereign LORD has given me a well-instructed tongue, to know the word that sustains the weary."
I've run across several acronyms that can help evaluate if something is worth saying—whether verbally or in a text, email, or social media post. But the other day, God seemed to impress a particular word filter on my mind: do my words have the right "hue"?
H ~ Are my words honest? I'm not talking about "brutal" honesty here. I'm not talking about steamrolling over someone's feelings. I'm talking about being candid about my own messes and the rough edges of my life. Again and again, I've seen how people respond to this kind of honesty, because their lives are messy and rough-edged, too.
U ~ Are my words useful? Are they informative, instructive, clarifying, or practical? Do they serve some good purpose, or am I just saying (or typing) them to take up space?
E ~ Are my words encouraging? Will they build someone up? Will they show them they're not alone? Will they give hope? I think of the line from the song "Home on the Range": "Seldom is heard a discouraging word...." I want to do my part to make a twist on this true: "often is heard an encouraging word."
Oh God, Your name speaks. Help me to make it known.
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I'd love to hear from you! Feel free to tell me what you really think. Years ago, I explained to my then-two-year-old that my appointment with a counselor was "sort of like going to a doctor who will help me be a better mommy." Without blinking, she replied, "You'd better go every day." All of which is just to say I've spent some time in the school of brutal honesty!