I recently heard a story of a few high school seniors who went on a mission trip to India and had practiced a few basic phrases in Hindi. For whatever reason they thought they were saying “thank you” but were in fact saying  “Praise the Lord”. So whenever someone refilled their glass of water or helped them with their luggage or even showed them where the restrooms were, they would end the conversation with a very enthusiastic  “Praise the Lord” in Hindi.

Sometimes saying the wrong words can we harmless, or even funny, but words are powerful and we need to truly guard our lips. Once those words come out of our mouths there is no way to reel them back in, so to speak. Simply stated, speaking the wrong words can bring destruction in not only the lives around us but in our own lives as well.

Proverbs 13:3 (NIV) He who guards his lips guards his life, but he who speaks rashly will come to ruin.

Are our words building up or tearing down? Are we blessing or are we cursing? Are we speaking life or speaking death?

Due to the influence of social media in our society, our words  and posts have a farther reach than ever before, for better or worse. The Bible compares a spoken word to a rudder on a ship. Where are we steering our ships?

James 3:3-6The Message (MSG)

^3-5 A bit in the mouth of a horse controls the whole horse. A small rudder on a huge ship in the hands of a skilled captain sets a course in the face of the strongest winds. A word out of your mouth may seem of no account, but it can accomplish nearly anything—or destroy it!

^5-6 It only takes a spark, remember, to set off a forest fire. A careless or wrongly placed word out of your mouth can do that. By our speech we can ruin the world, turn harmony to chaos, throw mud on a reputation, send the whole world up in smoke and go up in smoke with it, smoke right from the pit of hell.

Lord Jesus help us carefully choose our words and to truly speak life. Help us to not always just say the first words that come into our minds, but to find the heart of God and then to speak. Help us use our words to release blessing, encouragement and hope to everyone around us. Praise the Lord!