Stop & Think Before We Ruin

“Stop & Think Before We Ruin”

By Zach Wood

Proverbs 13:13 NLT

Those who control their tongue will have a long life; opening your mouth can ruin everything.

There is not a single one of us reading this that doesn’t desire to have a long, fulfilling life, right?  We all want to live a very fulfilling life, making the most of all opportunities that come along.  We don’t want to do something or say something in our lives each day that messes things up.  However, this is exactly what many of us do without thinking often times.

There are many Scriptures that refer to us making wise choices in the words we use and how we say things to others.  Jesus taught us many things about how we use words and so did the Apostle Paul.  There were also others who mentioned how important it is for us to use words cautiously. 

I don’t think we realize sometimes enough how important it is for us to carefully choose the words we say to others.  We have all been hurt by some else’s words, but we have also hurt others by using words of our own as well.  Have you ever walked into a room or called someone on the phone only to say something you wish you’d never said?  Who hasn’t??? 

This is a powerful passage encouraging us to use our words wisely.  The second part of this passage should echo in our hearts and minds every single day as a warning for us to stop and think before we ruin a conversation or seriously hurt someone’s feelings.  So much can happen when we don’t think about what we say before the words come out. 

Every day, as I begin my day, I pray that God will use me to show His love to others I work with and anyone I come into contact with.  I pray that God will use my words to encourage.  However, I so often mess things up and don’t think before I speak.  How so often I find myself saying things that ruin a situation or make things awkward.  I try not to, but it happens.  And, I’m sure most of you do the same things as well. 

We all need to be wiser with our words, especially when we find ourselves in a heated situation and get frustrated.  It’s so easy to let words fly that we don’t mean and say things we will very soon regret. 

My prayer is that we will all stop and think before we ruin someone’s day or seriously hurt someone’s feelings.  Instead, let us stop and think and then do our best to encourage.