Being pure in speech is a vital part of our faith and this area is definitely an area God is refining me in. I have four children and I am constantly praying for the right words to say to my children and to my husband as well. We can so easily follow our flesh and speak words of discouragement to one another without even thinking. We can tear a person apart and encourage that person sometimes in one breath; especially to the people we love the most. Our words have the power of life and death. Proverbs 18:21, “The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.”(New International Version) Also James 3:8-10 states it well “But no one can tame the tongue, it is an uncontrollable evil, full of deadly poison. Sometimes it praises our Lord and Father and sometimes it breaks out into curses against those who have been made in the image of God. And so blessing and cursing come pouring out of the same mouth. Surely, my brothers and sisters this is not right.”
What we speak shows how we live for Christ. Our tongue speaks what comes from our heart. Therefore we have to look at the conditions of our hearts and what we store in them.
HOW DO WE STORE UP GOOD THINGS IN OUR HEART TO MAINTAIN PURE SPEECH?
4 Ways:
- Be in God’s Word
- Be in Good Company
- Be a Good Steward of your Mind
- Be filled with the Holy Spirit and Pray Daily
Be in God’s Word…
The truth needs to be embedded in your heart. I am learning that the more I am in God’s word the more I want to speak the truth and speak like Him. Also, the words penetrate my heart and fill me with wisdom. Matthew 15:18 says, “The words you speak come from the heart, that’s what defiles you.” (New Living) Therefore, our hearts need to be made right before God before we can even bring life to someone else. Before we speak, our hearts need to be filled with His truth because we speak from the heart. The heart really matters because Mathew 12:34 explains, “For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.“ Bath yourself in His word and watch your tongue speak life and truth. God’s word shows us how important our words are. Believe in the word in order to receive it!
Be in Good Company…
Surround yourself with positive people. Positive people will lift you up and encourage you. We are to eat the fruit of life and be in good company because bad company corrupts good character” 1 Corinthians 15:33. (New International Version) I know for me when I am around a certain family member that talks negatively to everyone I start to talk like that after a day of being with them, it is just contagious. Speech is contagious and being careful whom you choose to spend majority of your time with is crucial to how you talk and act. But if we surround ourselves with people that encourage, love and speak uplifting words, then we will want to be like that in our speech. You desire to speak words of life when you hang out with people that are optimistic and uplifting.
Be a Good Steward of your Mind…
As ladies we need to be careful what we think about and read and look at because we so easily judge each other on our looks and appearances and then point out flaws. Even if we don’t say it to that person we speak it to our friends. That is so dangerous when our speech turns into gossip and as woman it is like chewing bubble gum, very easy and seems natural to do that. Be conscious of what you look at and read about and what you put into your mind because our words can be the result of that. Keep your mind pure with Godly thoughts and fill your heart with good things and then you will speak good words and have good thoughts. What helps me is listening to worship music. Also, removing myself from environments that could cause me to talk a certain way that may not be healthy!
Be filled with Holy Spirit and Pray Daily…
This area is crucial because being filled with the Holy Spirit can guard me from evil. Asking the Holy Spirit to be your voice and praying daily that God will use your words to edify HIM is a huge part. For me I have to put scripture up to keep me reminded that the Holy Sprit is directing my speech NOT me! As I focus on that, I am reminded to say words of thanksgiving and all that I am thankful for and I am able to turn my attitude around right then. You can’t have pure speech on your own; you need the help of the Holy Spirit filling you up with His love and good fruit. Filling our minds and hearts with the Holy Spirit gives us wisdom.
Words have power and we can easily forget how much of an impact they make. We can’t take our words back either. It is like a tube of toothpaste, once you squeeze it out you can’t get it back in. The same is with words, once you say them, you can take them back so be mindful and use wisdom with your words. Proverbs 2:12 explains, “Wisdom will save you from evil people from those whose speech is corrupt.”
Mathew 12: 35-37 states it best, “A good person produces good words from a good heart, and evil person produces evil words from an evil heart. And I tell you this that you must give an account on judgment day if every idle word you speak. The words you say now reflect your fate then, either you will be justified by them or you will be condemned.” So know that our words will be judged and how important it is to have pure speech, because you truly are a reflection of Christ. Our prayer should be that our lips and heart beat one with each other. I encourage you to be a light by the words you speak and watch what God can do!
Photo Credit: ID 48802524 © Nyul | Dreamstime.com
