Quite
possibly you are a victim of cruel, harsh words from the time you were a
child. When someone called you a name or
even implied something bad about you; didn't it hurt? How easy was it for you to forget those words
or do they still ring clear in your ears? Some words may have wounded you so badly that
it has damaged your self esteem and possibly hindered you from the very calling
God has placed on your life.
Or
maybe you actually resort to name calling; tearing a person down until they are
knocked out cold emotionally. Perhaps
that person offended you in some way and the only way you know how to respond
is by lashing out with hurtful remarks or names.
It’s
easy to know when I’ve been offended; and much more difficult to see when I’m
the offender. Unfortunately, I can
relate very well with both scenarios. But
many times, the Holy Spirit has chastised and convicted me of how I respond to
someone in the heat of anger. And it’s
not always a pretty picture.
God’s
is very clear about the words that come out of our mouth. Did you know that we actually have the power
of life and death just with the use of our tongues? It’s true!
In Proverbs 18:21 NIV it tells us that
“The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.”
And
the Lord wasn’t just talking about the unbeliever. Oh contraire, my friend! He was speaking to those of us that call Him
our Lord and Savior. Don’t believe me? Read
it in James 3:9, where it says “With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human
beings, who have been made in God’s likeness.”
And
it’s very easy to justify ourselves by saying, “It’s just the way I am” or “I
really didn’t mean anything by what I said or called that person. They are just words.” Not so fast brothers & sisters, for you
see, God removes that excuse from our lips as well by digging deeper within us;
our hearts. In Luke 6:45 NIV we read, “ A good man
out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of
the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of
the heart his mouth speaks.”
Simply
put; whatever is in our heart will eventually come out. So the truth is; it’s really a heart
issue. Ouch!
The bad remarks and bad names are buried in our hearts, waiting to come
out at the next person that crosses our paths the wrong way. Not a good thing and definitely does not
please the Holy Spirit!
If you can relate, don’t be discouraged. Rejoice in knowing
the Lord loves us enough to reveal our sins and even shows us a way to fix
it. But it does take willingness from
you to heed to the Holy Spirit and requires you to be completely honest with
yourself. Simply take a moment before
God. Be honest with Him and confess your
sins; then sincerely ask the Lord for His forgiveness. True repentance will start the healing
process. If possible, take the next step
and apologize to those you’ve offended; even if you think they deserved
it. Then make it a habit to pray
scriptures like Psalm 51:10 NIV, “Create,
in me a clean heart, O God, and renew
a steadfast spirit within me.”
If your heart is clean before God; the fruits of
the Holy Spirit will flow freely from your lips. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy,
peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and
self-control”. Galatians 5:22-23 NIV
It
doesn’t get any simpler than that folks!
Be
blessed my family & friends and walk in the Lord’s total favor!
Love
you all!
Cyndy
No comments:
Post a Comment