Do you have the gift of healing? Well, according to Scripture you do. We all have it! We are born with it. The problem is that we don’t use this “gift” to heal, but to destroy. Proverbs states it most clearly: There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing (Prov. 12:18). A half-dozen chapters further states it even more distinctly as it is written that “death and life are in the power of the tongue” (Prov. 18:21).
In addition to these proverbs, there is the clear-cut style of James. He writes that with [the tongue] we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing” (James 3:9-10). For James, one’s speech was an indicator of whether his/her religion had any value or not (see James 1:26). James does not hold back from the truth much does he?
Now I know what you might be thinking. People need to hear the truth even if it hurts! Just look at James quoted above. He was pretty cut-throat with his writing. And so was Paul at times. So we don’t need to hold back from speaking the truth to others! But who’s and what truth are we talking about here?
You can agree that 2020 was a most interesting year. Pandemic. Election. Race issues. Masks vs. no masks. Trump vs. Biden. Black Lives Matter vs. everyone’s life matters. And to top it all off, there was the hoarding of toilet paper. So many opinions that led to so much hatred. Opinionated groups claimed “THE TRUTH” to the extent that those who didn’t agree became the enemy.
I don’t believe that folks should be banned from having opinions and thoughts on whatever topic they feel passionate about. It’s good to hear from others. But there has seemed to be a loss of civility. And it’s not just that we have stopped listening, it’s that we have taken the next step and have begun to verbally belittle our opponent as well. And BTW, the fact the we use the word opponent already says something about how we view “the other side.”
This is probably an understatement, but we need healing. And I think it can happen from speaking life instead of death. It can begin when we learn that what we say can be either cancerous or healing. And this must start with those of us who are Christ-followers. I’ve heard so much hateful speech come from the lips of those who claim to be Christian. As James wrote, “this should not be” (James 3:10).
So will you heal? Will your words be the fresh water amidst the bitterness? Will your tongue produce the fruit of life rather than the fallout of death? You may wonder how to begin. Can I suggest something that I learned from my grandfather when I was a kid? He told me, “If you can’t say something nice about someone, don’t say anything at all.” I realize there is more to having a life-giving tongue than this…in fact…there is much more. But for some of us, we need to start by learning just to “shut up” and “listen.” And as you do, you might come to find out that you have something nice to say after all.
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