There's something within us that makes us love to talk. It's just second nature to us humans. There's nothing wrong with talk; but when it turns to gossip, or the downing of another, then it is wrong. Once again, the unruly tongue has gotten the upper hand.

It's easy to talk - it's easy to pass judgement. One often does it without even realizing what's happening. In the midst of a conversation, one might get carried away, hurting someone's feelings. You've 'laid a brick'. Each brick adds up, and and as you lay another and another, then you've built a 'wall of bricks' that are hard to tear down. In fact, once you've been forgiven and the wall seems to have been torn down, they'll never be forgotten. The spoken word hurts, and regardless of how much we are forgiven, the person hurt never forgets. Satan knows what to pull up when things go wrong, and never under-estimate slewfoot!!

Each time you start to say something that you have reservations about, go to God first. Let the Holy Spirit guide you in what you should say and what you shouldn't say. He is never wrong and will never mislead you in your conversations. If you speak the Word rather than your humanistic thinking, then, if one takes an offense, then it will not be you they are offended at, but the Truth. Usually truth hurts, but if it comes from God, then you won't have to be asking forgiveness.

Heavenly Father, help us be more in tune with the Spirit, that we might be led in every conversation. Help us to use your Word to reach others, to never react out of anger or hurt, in answer to others. Help us never to judge others by our human thinking. In Jesus name, we pray. Amen.

Written June 6, 1998
All Scriptures are taken from the King James Version of the Holy Bible.