The Power of Words

 

By Andrea Merrell

I just returned from a writers’ conference where we talked about the power of our words—both spoken and written.

Let’s look first at the spoken word. The Book of James has a lot to say about the tongue. It’s little but boastful. It can be evil and full of iniquity. It can build up or tear down. It is a fire that can either bless or curse.

But what about the written word? The words we pen—or type into our computers—can have the same impact and even more so in this modern age of technology.

The Word for You Today says:

The impact of our words spreads far and fast, especially in our digital age. Words published on any social media platform can be shared all over the world in seconds. Like a fire, those words can get out of control and do irreparable damage.

Those of us who have been called to write for the Lord have a huge responsibility to make sure our words are true, instructive, and edifying whether in a book or a simple text or post.  Many reputations have been destroyed by a single, careless word. We’ve all seen folks who hang out all their “dirty laundry” online. We constantly see hateful, bitter remarks that should have never seen the light of day. There are even a host of articles, blog posts, and even books—written by Christian authors—that have caused hurt, confusion, and countless arguments.

Words are powerful. God spoke the world into existence. The Bible says both life and death are contained in the power of the tongue (Proverbs 18:21). The choice is ours.

Let’s be responsible writers. Ephesians 4:29 says, “Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them” (NLT). My paraphrase: Don’t use language that will harm others in any way. Let everything you write be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who read them.

We can pray along with the psalmist David, “May my spoken (and written) words ... be pleasing even to you, O Lord my Rock and my Redeemer” (Psalm 19:14 TLB, emphasis mine).

Photo by CHUTTERSNAP on Unsplash