Spot

No matter where you live you’ve probably seen it.  In fact, I would guess that it irks you and may cause you to feel angry and upset.  What is it?  It’s someone who takes up two or more parking spaces with their vehicles.  It never fails… you are desperately looking for a place to park and think you’ve finally found the perfect spot.  That is until you go to turn in and the car next to you is over the line… or better yet… parked diagonally across two or more spaces. 

I ran across one person’s solution to this dilemma. They leave a note.  Not a note that chews the driver out or calls them all sorts of words that you wouldn’t find between the covers of the Bible.  No, this note is more subtle.  They draw a picture of a dog and below the sketch write: “I am giving you this dog, his name is Spot.  I thought you might want him, as you seem to be trying to take as many spots as possible.  I hope this helps.”

Clever, right?

But how does the person receiving the note feel?  If I’m guessing I would say that the message isn’t seen as “kinder”… it’s seen as sarcastic, passive, and unnecessary.  The driver more than likely balls up that sketch and throws it to the ground in disgust… vowing to take up three spaces next time they park.

But why?  It was meant in fun… a sweet reminder that they were out of line.

Problem is… just because we mean a message in one way, it doesn’t mean it has to be taken that way.  It happens all the time… we text something and the reader reacts in a completely different way than intended.  We send an email only to have it returned with question marks and hurt feelings in the reply.

The Bible tells us to watch our communication… in any form.   It is to be Godly and well thought through… each word or image specifically chosen to glorify God, encourage another person, or bring peace to a situation. 

Colossians 4:6

“Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.”

Proverbs 16:23

“The heart of the wise makes his speech judicious and adds persuasiveness to his lips.”

Proverbs 18:2

“A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion.”

Proverbs 15:1

“A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.”

Ephesians 4:29

“Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.”

While we can’t control the reaction to our words…we can control the words (or images) before they leave our mouths or minds.  Let’s make every effort to bring peace with our speech… in all forms… so that even if the person receiving our communication reacts poorly, we know that we have done our level best to glorify God with every syllable.  

Watch Your Words

“And a small rudder makes a huge ship turn wherever the pilot chooses to go, even though the winds are strong.  In the same way, the tongue is a small thing that makes grand speeches. But a tiny spark can set a great forest on fire.”   James 3:4-5

Words change things.  They cause leaders to fall and the unlikely hero to rise.  They make people do things they wouldn’t ordinarily do.   They are persuasive and transformational.   Words are powerful.  It only takes a few syllables to change an entire situation.  Perspectives to shift... minds to change...  The tongue can bring hope and a word on a page can alter the way you see things forever.  In today’s verse, we see a parallel drawn between the relatively small rudder of a ship and our tongue.  Both steer things.  Both can shift direction.  Both can cause big change.  

Sometimes words can be positive...  A different way of saying something can make things better... more descriptive... clearer.   Huge results can come from just a few well spoken phrases.   Jesus Himself used the perfect words at the perfect time to remind us that we aren’t perfect... but we are His. 

But sometimes words can hurt. 

They can cut us deeply and cause us to doubt ourselves and the size of our God.   Maybe someone you know has hurt you with their words... and maybe you’ve started to believe what they said about you.   Perhaps you’ve allowed your tongue to say a few things that caused some damage... and you don’t know how to fix it.  I want to challenge you today to think about words differently.  Monitor each word that you say....or text... or instagram...or tweet....  Ask yourself... is this going to build a person up?  Make the world a better place?  Reflect Christ?  Am I controlling my tongue or is it controlling me?  

It’s much better to think through our words before they leave our lips than it is to rebuild the damage caused by careless remarks.  When we make the choice to honor God with every syllable... we worship the One who loves us and created us with a purpose.