Words, Words, Words
“All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’;
anything beyond this comes from the evil one.”
Matthew 5:37
“Words, words, words, I’m so sick of words! I get words all day through, first from him now from you …” So begins one of the songs from the famous musical, “My Fair Lady.” To a large degree, we are a verbally saturated culture. We have a multitude of ways to share our views with others, both quickly and to a wide audience. We might even feel Eliza Doolittle’s pain at times when we consider how many words are spoken and like her, we may want to say, “I’m so sick of words!”
Yet, words from our own lips can also come all too readily and quickly. We can react and “bite” at someone else’s comments or opinions online or in a conversation. We can apologize too quickly and without prayer or discernment and take account of our wrongs. We can proudly declare our strongly held, but naïve opinions. We can blab secrets. We can justify ourselves endlessly when we feel threatened or insecure. Proverbs teach us that a wise person knows how to hold their tongue, but all too often we are like the fool who does not.
Words, words, words.
What if we only said what needed saying and let go of the rest? What if our speech was consistent and reflected our trust in God rather than attempts to promote ourselves? What if we were so comfortable with our identity in Christ, as broken but forgiven, that we could keep our mouths shut and know that for the gift that it is?
Let your “yes” be “yes” and your “no” be “no.”
Trust those unsaid things to God. Trust the fears of God. Trust the compulsions of God. Give the things you wish words could fix or control to Him.
