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The Damage of Wounding Words
by Dr. Paul Chappell
“There is a generation that are pure in their own eyes, and yet is not washed from their filthiness. There is a generation, O how lofty are their eyes! and their eyelids are lifted up. There is a generation, whose teeth are as swords, and their jaw teeth as knives, to devour the poor from off the earth, and the needy from among men.”
Proverbs 30:12–14
I came across a powerful description that someone wrote of one of the most serious problems that undermines the effectiveness and unity of so many churches: “My name is Gossip. I have no respect for justice. I maim without killing. I break hearts and ruin lives. I am cunning and malicious and gather strength with age. The more I am quoted, the more I am believed. My victims are helpless. They cannot protect themselves against me because I have no name and face. To track me down is impossible. The harder you try, the more elusive I become. I am nobody’s friend. Once I tarnish a reputation, it is never the same. I topple governments and wreck marriages. I make headlines and headaches. I ruin careers and cause sleepless nights, heartaches, and indigestion. I make innocent people cry in their pillows. Even my name hisses. I am called Gossip.”
The words that we speak to and about others have enormous power, and we are going to one day answer to God for the words we have chosen to carelessly utter. “But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment” (Matthew 12:36). Every Christian should make a deliberate and intentional effort to make sure that his speech is uplifting. This is equally true whether we are speaking to someone or about them. There are many things that even if true should not be spread to damage or destroy the reputation of others.
Proverbs 30:12–14
I came across a powerful description that someone wrote of one of the most serious problems that undermines the effectiveness and unity of so many churches: “My name is Gossip. I have no respect for justice. I maim without killing. I break hearts and ruin lives. I am cunning and malicious and gather strength with age. The more I am quoted, the more I am believed. My victims are helpless. They cannot protect themselves against me because I have no name and face. To track me down is impossible. The harder you try, the more elusive I become. I am nobody’s friend. Once I tarnish a reputation, it is never the same. I topple governments and wreck marriages. I make headlines and headaches. I ruin careers and cause sleepless nights, heartaches, and indigestion. I make innocent people cry in their pillows. Even my name hisses. I am called Gossip.”
The words that we speak to and about others have enormous power, and we are going to one day answer to God for the words we have chosen to carelessly utter. “But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment” (Matthew 12:36). Every Christian should make a deliberate and intentional effort to make sure that his speech is uplifting. This is equally true whether we are speaking to someone or about them. There are many things that even if true should not be spread to damage or destroy the reputation of others.
Today’s Growth Principle:
Use your words to strengthen, encourage, and build up others rather than tear them down.
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