Sticks And Stones

Read Proverbs 11:1-31

2. Pride leads to disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.
3. Honesty guides good people; dishonesty destroys treacherous people.
4. Riches won’t help on the day of judgment, but right living can save you from death.
5. The godly are directed by honesty; the wicked fall beneath their load of sin.
6. The godliness of good people rescues them; the ambition of treacherous people traps them.
7. When the wicked die, their hopes die with them, for they rely on their own feeble strength.
8. The godly are rescued from trouble, and it falls on the wicked instead.
9. With their words, the godless destroy their friends, but knowledge will rescue the righteous.
10. The whole city celebrates when the godly succeed; they shout for joy when the wicked die.
11. Upright citizens are good for a city and make it prosper, but the talk of the wicked tears it apart. Proverbs 11:2-11

The power of words is amazing. Say a word and you can make a roomful of people laugh; say another and you can make them cry. An entire nation’s morale can change with the words of its leaders. You could even completely destroy a person’s reputation with a thoughtless word or two. It has been said that the pen is mightier than the sword—and for good reason.

Proverbs 11 contains some thoughts on the destructiveness of words and stands as a good reminder for us to watch what we say.

This chapter also has thoughts on wealth; abuse of power; leadership; and generosity.

Like power tools, words have the potential to do great good or enormous damage, depending on how we use them. We can either use words to damage a relationship or make it better (Proverbs 11:9, Proverbs 11:11-13). Unfortunately, most people use words to destroy more often than to build up.

Each bit of gossip and each word of slander we speak not only hurts those around us, but it also wastes an opportunity to help. Every day brings many opportunities to use words negatively or positively. Sadly, it takes less effort to gossip than to praise; less skill to cut with sarcasm than to repair with thanks. So most people hear far more destructive comments than constructive ones.

Remember that every person with whom you interact today will be either better or worse off as a consequence of your words. Your words could make the difference. Think before you talk!