Sticks and Stones
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Last weekend was a good weekend. We spent it as we often do at the ballpark. Cooper’s team The Sluggers played in their first 9 and under tournament and placed 3rd overall. Pretty good for a bunch of 8 year olds!
Sunday I was planning on leaving the kids with Matt and just taking Cooper to the games. However, Emery was up sick all night and I ended up taking Lilah with me. Lilah is usually the star of the show and this day was no different. She was on a roll most of day, making everyone laugh and smile. Towards the end of the day she started playing with another little girl from a different team. This little girl was older than Lilah and decided to tell Lilah that she was annoying and a meany. Lilah was appalled that someone would call her a name. She couldn’t believe it!
She went around to every person she knew at the ballpark and told them that “that girl called her hannoying” Unbelievable! What struck me later as I thought about it was how hurt she was by this. It was her first encounter with someone hurting her feelings. Not a lesson that I wanted her to learn, but inevitable for children. As children we learn the “sticks and stones may brake your bones, but words will never hurt you” what a lie we teach our children!
Words hurt!
I remember as a child the things that were said about me word for word. I have long forgotten scrapes and broken bones, but words have not been forgotten. So many people’s lives are defined by the words that are spoken over them. Our words are powerful.
The Bible says that life and death are in the power of the tongue. We have power to speak life into a situation, into our children, into our spouses. In the same way we have to power to speak death over those same things.
Our children encounter harsh words daily, they encounter the worst kind of mean. They encounter the kind that cuts deep and that you don’t forget about. I started thinking about the effect of words on our lives. If harsh and hurtful words can shape the course of a person’s life, how much more can positive and encouraging words shape a life? If we could change the words that we say about our job situations, our church situations and our relationships I just wonder if our lives would begin to look different.
There is a sermon I heard as a teenager that I will never forget. The youth pastor I used to work for, Pastor Shannon Kapp, preached a message with the tap line, “If you say it you will see it.” The premise of this was talking about when God speaks He speaks creative power. We have that same power at work in us through the power of the Holy Spirit, so it stands to reason, what we say we will also see. When we parter with the Holy Spirt our words have the power to be creative.
For me personally I know that I have some situations I need to see the power of God at work in, I have some people in my life, especially some little people, who I want to see the plans and purposes of God take shape in their lives. I am determining in my heart to change the way I speak, to purposefully speak life into my life.
Each of us by choosing one area of our life can see a change take place. Just pick one. We can get overwhelmed trying to change the way we speak about everything all at once we quit. Just choose one. Start speaking life over one person, one situation and see what happens, a little challenge I am willing to try. Will anyone out there try it with me?
