ICS Daily Devotions
Words that Hurt
Luke 6:45 (NKJV) 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.
Have you ever been hurt by someone’s words? Most definitely. In fact, we might have been the ones who have caused harm to others with our words and actions. All of us are works in progress in this aspect of our lives.
When we get into a tit for tat relationship using our words to harm each other, then we will never get out of the vicious cycle. Someone has to start speaking blessings and words that edify so that it will break the cycle and bring restoration to the relationship. We will never feel good whether we are the person receiving the remarks or the person dishing it out. There would be a lot of emotional scars and even post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) for those who have gone through toxic relationships. There are children who have been so badly criticized that their self-confidence and self-esteem are affected for life. This is especially true when these unkind words come from people whom they respect like their parents or teachers. The other kind of verbal abuse can be from peer bullying through social media. There are those who feel that they will never be good enough because their parents have unrealistic demands of them. Unfortunately, those with sharp tongues or are unkind with their words may also probably be victims of verbal abuse themselves. They have developed ways to protect themselves by being confrontational and abusive. It is sad that sometimes we think that we are entitled to belittle another person just because we are smarter, wealthier or hold a higher office. Jesus said in Luke 6:45 (NKJV), “out of abundance of the heart his mouth speaks” and this reveals what kind of a person we are. All that we have been bottling up in our hearts will spill out and this is especially true when we are under stress. It is seldom a pleasant sight.
Examples of destructive words:
• Whenever 2 sisters argued, the non-adopted one would say to the adopted one, “You are not even one of us, you are adopted”. The adopted one would reply to the non-adopted one, “They chose me, but with you they had no choice”.
• In a gathering, when you express your own feelings or echo someone else’s, your spouse says to you in a derogatory tone, “What would you know about it?” ( 你懂什么?). It makes you feel that you are not worthy, important or respected.
All of us are already living in a broken world together, therefore we as believers should make a difference by being kind and gracious with our words towards one another. As Christians, the Holy Spirit will be grieved within us when we speak words which do not bring love, edification and peace in a relationship. We can be different especially when we are born-again. We are able to turn the situation around for ourselves, the people around us and our families. God has enabled us to do it and we are able to get better day by day if we allow the Holy Spirit to work in us.
Sermon Series – Ouch! It Hurts!
