Speaking Life

Driving on the freeway today, I heard Toby Mac’s song “Speak Life” on the radio. After hearing that song, I pondered the act of speaking life. Do I speak life to people I encounter as I go about my day, over relationships, or even to myself?

Encounters

We communicate with people in person, on the phone and even over the computer.

As we go about our day, how do we speak to people we encounter? When we speak, do we look into their eyes? Do we speak kindly, with compassion, maybe even give an encouraging word? Or do we ignore other people completely, too busy to give them a smile, any bit of our precious time?

What about on the phone? We call for help, frustrated with a problem. Do we take that frustration out on the person at the other end? Phone rings and the person tries to sell us something or asks for a donation. Are we kind with our words and tone? Or, feeling justified, are we curt, impatient, upset or angry because they had the nerve to call and ask us for money?

And thanks to Social Media, many of us “speak” through the internet, affecting any number of individuals. Do you think before you write, posting things that bring light, unity, love? Or do your posts cause dissension? Do you “speak” harshly in a comment when someone posts something that gets under your skin?

Relationships

Relationships comprise our lives, whether personal (family, friends) or professional (co-workers, clients). How well do we speak life over these relationships?

Do we take our family or friends for granted? They know we love them. Seeing our uglier side (anger, harshness, hurtful words) is just part of them getting to see the good and the bad. Do our words build them up according to their needs, not our own? When we disagree, do we engage in conversation, speaking kindly with the intent of woking it out? Or do we blame, shut them down, or worse, shut down ourselves?

Professionally, do we encourage and support our co-workers or employees? If in charge of people, do we use constructive words to get them to improve their skill set or do we shoot them down or belittle them? How often do we speak up for others that have trouble speaking up for themselves?

Self

How often do you look in the mirror and speak words of life over the person that looks back at you? Is your first thought: “Wow, look at you!”? Or is it: “Oh my, look at those bags, wrinkles, belly (fill in the blank for any negative thought).

Speaking life over yourself means getting rid of all that negative self-talk. It means speaking God’s view of you over yourself. God’s Word tells us He created our inmost being, knitting us in our mother’s womb (Psalm 139:13). He sees us completely, all our tears, considers us precious and honored (Psalm 56:8, Isaiah 43:4).

God loves us with an everlasting love (Jeremiah 31:3). His love for us is so great that Jesus died on the cross for us. Jesus’ death and resurrection enables us to have an intimate relationship with Him now and forever (John 19-20). We are valuable in God’s sight, not a mistake. Remember that the next time you look in the mirror.

Prayer

Lord, you gave us mouths that have the power to speak life or death into another being’s life. Fill our hearts with Christ’s light, for Your word tells us that our mouths speak what our hearts store. Equip, enable and empower us to make the most of every opportunity so that our conversations to others and to ourselves are full of grace, gentleness, compassion and love.

Proverbs 18:21, Luke 6:45b, Colossians 4:5-6