“A wise man’s heart guides his mouth, and his lips promote instruction” (16:23). A few days ago, I wrote about the need to discipline our thoughts. The next step is to discipline the tongue. We must allow our words to be guided by wisdom and love in every situation. How unthinkingly we often throw out words as though they have little consequence! As I have said already in this issue of Thrive, our words have greater effect on others than we might imagine. We can do great evil with our tongue. We are told in 16:28: “A perverse man stirs up dissension, and a gossip separates close friends.” On the other hand, we can do great good. As it says in 16:24: “Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones” (16:24). Your words can be like this if you choose to make it so. You can bring such joy and healing by your words. You can make someone’s day with a bit of encouragement. You can even alter the course of someone’s life with the right words of exhortation. Let wisdom and love guide your speech always and you will become a fountain of blessing for those around you. Speak always with the welfare of those around you in mind. Be generous in your conversation. Be wise about when to speak and when not to.
Ask God to give you greater wisdom and love to guide your speech today.
Read Proverbs 16:23-33
