I enjoy reading little tidbits written by Robert Fulghum. In his book All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten, Fulghum relates a story he heard of villagers in the Solomon Islands who “practice a unique form of logging. If a tree is too large to be felled with an ax, the natives cut it down by yelling at it.” He describes how they yell at the tree every morning for thirty days until it dies and falls over. In classic Fulghum style, he then compares their practice with how we yell at things and people, killing their spirit.

The writer of Proverbs knew what a weapon our words were too:

Rash words are like sword thrusts,
 but the tongue of the wise brings healing.

Proverbs 12:18

Fulghum ends his thoughts on the subject like this:

“Sticks and stones will break our bones, but words will break our hearts.”

We must always choose our words wisely, as they can hurt or heal so easily.

Prayer

Dear God, let my mouth be an instrument of prayer and praise and blessing, as I speak today in a way that gives honor to my Savior Jesus, in whose name I pray. Amen.