Earlier this week I was preparing for my Wednesday Night Alive class on the Ten Commandments. Each week we are looking at a different commandment and what it means for our lives today as Christians. This week we were looking at the commandment, “Thou shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord.”
Throughout our conversation we started talking about the difference our words make. Do the words we speak to one another reveal the goodness and beauty of God, or do they reflect something different? Do they bring hope and love to others or do they tear down and hurt others?
I read the scripture from Ephesians 4:29 that says, “Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear.” In our class I gave everyone a piece of paper and invited them to keep it with them this week. On the paper, was written a simple prayer based off this scripture.
“Oh God, let no evil talk come out of my mouth, but only what is useful for building up, as there is need, so that my words may give grace to those who hear. Amen.”
It’s a very simple prayer, but I believe a very powerful one if we take it seriously. In today’s world, the evil talk sometimes comes out of our mouths as well as from what we type on our computers. I want to invite you to join us in praying that prayer every day this week. If we begin to focus on only using words that build others up and give grace to those who hear at home, on our computers, and around the conference table at work, I promise it will begin to change your relationships with those around you.
Happy Friday!
