P.S. please forgive all the funky fonts -- blogger and word apparently do not get along. i try to fix it as I catch it but sometimes it jumps right back to the weird stuff.
See verse 25 here.
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Proverb31:26
When she speaks, her words are wise,
and she gives instructions with kindness.
Character Traits:
speaking with wisdom and kindness
Character Trait:
Speaking in love
Definition:
--the use of speech that conveys good sense or the ability to see beneath the surface of things and shows or grows out of gentleness or goodness of heart
Verses in the Bible about it:
Proverbs 15:1
A gentle answer deflects anger, but harsh words make tempers flare.
2 Timothy 2:15
Work hard so you can present yourself to God and receive his approval. Be a good worker, one who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly explains the word of truth.
Ephesians 4:32
Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.
Titus 3:2
They must not slander anyone and must avoid quarreling. Instead, they should be gentle and show true humility to everyone.
1 Corinthians 4:21
Which do you choose? Should I come with a rod to punish you, or should I come with love and a gentle spirit?
Ephesians 4:2
Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love.
1 Peter 3:15-16
Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if someone asks about your Christian hope, always be ready to explain it. But do this in a gentle and respectful way. Keep your conscience clear. Then if people speak against you, they will be ashamed when they see what a good life you live because you belong to Christ.
Colossians 4:6
Let your conversation be gracious and attractive so that you will have the right response for everyone.
Ephesians 4:15
Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church.
Summary:
Speech is one of those things that can be used in both good and evil ways. Obviously, God wants us to speak to others in a way that recognizes them as worthy of respect. Often, our speech, particularly from Christians, is judging, condemning, and arrogant. These verses are clear, though, that our speech should be the exact opposite in many cases.
Conclusion for this verse:
It is our responsibility to use the kind of speech that shows our love for others. The perception of Christians that I run into more often though is one of people who consistently condemn, are intolerant, and unloving. While that may or may not be truth, it makes our responsibility of using wise and loving words even more necessary. We must not only show Christ’s love with our words but also counteract the hateful words of those who have spent too much speech condemning.
While there is a time and place for judgment (for example, when something evil is happening without remorse or repentance), it seems that is often too easy for us to go to. As Christ’s followers, we should NOT be eager to go for the jugular. Instead, the old adage about drawing more flies with honey should apply. That is not meant to suggest that we brown-nose non-Christians but rather than we accept them as a person loved dearly by God and on an equal plane with ourselves treating them with the same loving guidance and relationship that Christ himself used to woo us in.
Comments:
This is one of the verses in this proverb that can take a bite out of me. My tongue is much too easy a trap for me. I should really spend a lot of time and effort learning to control how and what I speak. It is just as easy for me to go from the extreme of being critical and gossipy as it is to go to the other extreme of being the insincere flatterer. I need to find the middle ground and practice speaking wisely with kindness.
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