Daily Devotional for October 13, 2015

Ephesians 4:29
Stop all your dirty talk. Say the right thing at the right time and help others by what you say.

Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.

Acronyms are a strange phenomenon…particularly in the world of texting and social media.  More than a few people have thought they knew what certain sets of capital letters stood for…only to learn that the meaning was totally different.  I read an interesting blog post recently about how people have made OMG a common acronym – and phrase – to write or speak.  In reality, this oath takes the LORD’s name in vain and shows disrespect for God and His commandments.

We’ve grown complacent - and in some cases, sloppy – with our language.  More and more “curse words” have crept into common vernacular and are now readily “accepted” on mainstream television and radio.  I cringe every time I hear someone say, “Oh, my God!” – even when they are doing so in a show of empathy or concern toward another person.  I have made a point not to use OMG or some form of it in my own conversation.

But more than this, we need to guard EVERY word we say.  I’d be willing to bet that your mother taught me, as mine did, that “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all.”  Yet the temptation is there…to criticize…to be negative…to cut others down in retaliation for their own hurtful words.  We are sometimes moved to lash out and say ugly things when life takes a turn we don’t like and we feel that God has let us down. Even writing this, it sounds absurd.  God never fails us!

So our challenge today is to guard our heart – and our words.  We must guard against not only speaking the four-letter variety in haste or out of habit…we must also guard our everyday comments and language.  Make every word count…or don’t say a word!  In The Message translation, this verse says, “Say only what helps, each word a gift.”  Oh, that we would internalize this command and make it a part of our daily living.  I’m going to try…what about you?

©2015 Debbie Robus