Words, Words, Words!

"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)

Once there was a girl with a very sharp tongue. She liked to cut people with words. One of her pleasures was to say things that would start trouble between friends or stir up a family quarrel. Then she would sit back and watch the trouble she started.

One day she came home badly frightened. She started a rumor that attracted the attention of the police, and some of her friends found themselves in deep trouble. Her mother listened to her tearful account and told the girl she would do what she could for her.

First of all, she told her daughter to go over into a vacant lot and gather a handful of dandelions that had gone to seed. Then her mother told her to blow the seeds so that they would scatter all over their lawn. The girl was so frightened she was willing to do anything.

After she had scattered the seeds her mother then asked her to gather them up again. "But that's impossible!" cried the girl. "That's right," replied her mother. "It is just as impossible to gather those seeds as it is for you to undo the wrong you have done with your tongue. And when those seeds begin to grow they will bloom and remind you of the weeds you have sown with your tongue."

God gave the gift of speech to a very special group—his children. It is a great privilege to be able to talk and express ourselves with thousands of words and sounds. They are not to be wasted in idle chatter or in spreading dirt and discontent.

Dear Lord, may I never be ashamed of what I say.