Communications security, or COMSEC in the military, especially during wartime is an extremely important practice.
The results of lax communications got so bad in WW2 that the phrase, “Loose lips sink ships” was coined.
This is part two of the series about how our words (and sometimes, silence) impact the lives of others. Part one was introduced in:
In a similar fashion, things that are said to or about others can have an extreme effect on our personal lives.
In the Bible, particularly in the book of Proverbs, we are exhorted to understand the impact of our words and learn how they can be used to bless, heal, and encourage others.
Knowing what to say, when to say it, and just as important, when to be quiet is very important in a relationship.
Most of us need a lot of help with this …
Set a watch, O LORD, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips. Psalm 141:5
The book of Proverbs is full of admonitions concerning our behavior and our speech.
As Proverbs tells us, Guarding our lips is a matter of guarding our hearts.
Keep your heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.
Put away from you a wicked mouth, and devious lips put far from you. Pro 4:23-24
It is essential to examine our hearts continually. The things in our hearts eventually reveal themselves in thoughts, words, and actions.
Jesus had this to say in his ongoing battle with the Pharisees -
But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man.
For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.
These are the things which defile a man … Matthew 15:18-20
For the purpose of this series, I want to concentrate on the fact that not only what we say, but how we say it can have a tremendous impact, either for good or evil.
Over the next few articles, we will look at the power of words in a few different ways:
The power of a “word in season”
The power of words to encourage
The power of words to destroy
The power of words to rebuke wrongdoing
The power of silence
The power of words to evoke emotional responses
I hope, by the end of this series, we all have a better understanding of the raw power that simple words and expressions can have.
Until next time, friends …