My husband, Mark, got home last night after being on a business trip for a week. He typically only travels a few times a year and I hate it when he is gone. He is truly my best friend and the one I go to when I need to talk something through or just need an encouraging word.
While Mark was gone, a high school friend of his called him and wanted to catch up with him. I encouraged this friend to try Mark’s cell phone because I had just talked to him and knew he was settled in his hotel room for the night. The friend laughed and said, “You just want me to call him and make sure he isn’t out on the town partying.” Now this friend has known Mark since childhood. He is a Christian and knows the kind of person Mark is and what he believes. I immediately recognized how the enemy was using this man to try and plant a seed of doubt or concern in my mind. I asked the guy how long he had known Mark and if he could ever see Mark doing what he suggested.
When I hung up the phone I couldn’t help but think about how we, as Christians, allow the enemy to use our words to do harm to those we love and care about. We make a cutting comment to someone and then laugh and say we were just teasing. Or we may bring up a past mistake or failure of someone and throw it in their face “meaning no harm.”
Proverbs 11:12 says “A man who lacks judgment derides his neighbor, but a man of understanding holds his tongue.” Proverbs 18:21 says “The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.”
Dear friends, we are to be carriers of life. We are called to be an example to believers [1 Timothy 4:12]. 1 Thessalonians 5:11 says “Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.”
When we use our tongue to plant seeds of doubt in the mind of others, causing them to question Jesus or others or even themselves, we are partnering with the devil. You’ve heard me say it before; there is great power in the spoken word. You have the power to bless or the power to curse by what you say to and about others. Whose will do you want to be accomplishing through your spoken word? Make sure you choose your words wisely and make sure you know who you’re partnering with by your actions and your words.