~The Echo~
I shouted aloud and louder,
While out on the plain one day;
The sound grew faint and fainter
Until it had died away.
My words had gone forever-
They left no trace or track
But the hills nearby caught up the cry
And sent an echo back.
I spoke a word in anger
To one who was my friend.
Like a knife it cut him deeply-
A wound that was hard to mend.
That word so thoughtlessly uttered,
I would we could both forget,
But it's echo lives and memory gives
The recollection yet.
How many hearts are broken,
How many friends are lost
By some unkind word spoken-
Before we count the cost.
But a word or deed of kindness
Will repay a hundredfold,
For it echoes again in the hearts of men
And carries a joy untold...
Proverbs 15:23
"A man hath joy by the answer of his mouth; and a word spoken in due
season, how good is it!"
Ladies, this verse is one of God's echoes for me, for this verse rings
loud and clear in my heart and mind over and over again when I have misused
my tongue and sinned with my lips. Like you, I have echoes of unkind
words ringing in my memory that others have spoken to me, but I also know
I'm responsible for many unkind echoes that I've left in the lives of
people who've known me. As Job said in verse 2 of chapter 19 of his friends,
"How long will ye vex my soul, and break me in pieces with words?" So
too, have you and I been guilty of doing this very same thing, breaking
others in pieces with our words. We have affected many times those we
love in this very same way....
If joy is made available to us through our answers, then we best master
the way we answer people, amen? The Bible says in Proverbs 15:28 that
"the heart of the righteous studieth to answer" and so that is what we
will do today - study how to answer. Our answers are usually the result
of the way we are reacting inwardly toward what is going on outwardly
in our lives.
Job 20:2 says, "Therefore do my thoughts cause me to answer..."
The book of Job is a good book to study when it comes to reactions and
words mixed together. Job suffered greatly, yet all throughout this book
his answers give away what was going on inside of him, as do ours!
Job 13:15 says, "Though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him."
Such was Job's attitude in his time of intense suffering that allowed
him to utter these words at all.... The way Job's friends answered Job
in his troubles also provides much insight for us in regard to answers
we give to those who we know are suffering or struggling in some way.
We find that we need much wisdom to choose our words properly within these
types of situations. Why? Because joy hinges on our answers - for others
and for ourselves!
So dear lady, do you take the answers you give away seriously? Do you
really believe that
YOU can be the cause of your own joy with your own words?
Proverbs 12:14, "A man shall be satisfied with good by the fruit of HIS
mouth..."
What if Job had not said he trusted in God? What if he had moaned and
groaned about all that had happened to him and said, "It's not fair that
He slay me, it's not fair!!" Would he be responsible for encouraging
himself, or discouraging himself? Ladies, when you answer the events
of your life with moaning and groaning, are your answers responsible for
bringing you joy, encouragement, hope to go on - or are your own words
causing you yourself to want to quit?! Job was able to have joy by the
answer of HIS mouth - regardless of his friend's mouths - because his
trust was in God! Is yours?? If it is, your answers will reveal that
truth...
Psalm 119:42, "So shall I have therewith to answer him that reproacheth
me: for I trust in thy word."
When we are armed with the promises of God, our answers will reflect our
trust in God, or lack thereof! Have you ever been in the presence of
those who are always praising God for one thing or another? They are
tightly holding onto the promises of God! That's why they have joy -
for it comes to them by the answer of their own mouths speaking forth
from the contents of their hearts. What answers are your hearts spilling
forth today, ladies? If you're trusting in the Lord, your lips should
be loaded with many positive things to say, amen? I don't know if you've
ever felt this way or not, but I sometimes get plain old tired of hearing
myself talk simply because I am not bringing myself any joy with the moanings
and groanings I utter all to often. Why, if I keep on uttering them and
listening to myself, in no time at all I can have myself all worked up,
leaving my family wondering what in the world happened to me! Nothing
really happened to me - except that I just depleted my joy with my very
own words!
The very next verse in Psalm 119:43 says, "And take not the word of truth
utterly out of my mouth; for I have hoped in thy judgements."
Know what takes place when our answers are void of truth, when they are
nowhere to be found upon our lips? We lose hope and we can cause others
to lose hope as well! When hope is gone, so too, is any hope of joy...
A man truly does have joy by the answer of his mouth, but don't forget
that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh! If you're
tight-lipped, chances are your heart is hardened... Fill your heart up
with the truth, amen?! Only then will your answers be a blessing to
yourself and others....
Proverbs 24:26 says, "Every man shall kiss HIS lips that giveth a right
answer."
Bet you didn't think you could ever kiss your own lips, did you? Well
it's true, you can! Ladies, you are being good to yourself, doing your
own heart good - giving yourself a kiss every time you give right answers,
answers that are appropriate and glorifying to God. Not only that, just
like a kiss is something you bestow upon another person, so too will other
people want to be near you, they will want to be in your presence simply
because they enjoy the fruit of your lips! They want to be kissed by
your kind, encouraging words, words that praise God and speak truth, words
that speak righteousness and the promise of hope. Would you say you
have that affect on others? Or do they shrink from the "kiss" of your
lips?
For instance, some of you might be animal lovers out there, but I will
never understand people that let their pets lick them on the face - that
is the kind of a kiss I definitely shrink from!! But think about your
words and consider if they might be having a similar affect on those with
whom you come in contact with. Are people walking away shuddering and
saying within themselves, "Yuck!" after spending time talking with you,
much like I would if a dog licked my lips?? Ladies, let's be sure the
answers that come forth from our lips are drawing people to us, and not
sending them away disgusted, amen?
How long has it been since you've "kissed" your husband with kind words,
with right answers? What about your children? They certainly need to
learn the importance of their answers too, amen? When we first started
homeschooling, I noticed that my children didn't always speak kindly to
each other or answer one other nicely during the course of the day. Improper
ways of answering one another will quickly cause the deterioration of
relationships, and this was beginning to happen at our house! Of course,
those issues had to be dealt with, and now I remind them all that when
they answer one another properly they've just given themselves a kiss!
:-)
1 Peter 3:15 says, "But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be
ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of
the hope that is in you with meekness and fear."
When you are suffering, is it clearly evident to others that there is
a hope that lies within you? Can they tell by the flow of words that
are coming out of your mouth during your trials that the Lord God is sanctified
in your heart? In other words, is it evident to others that you have
turned everything over to the Lord, and live only to please and glorify
Him? Is it so evident by your daily attitude and speech that people just
have to ask you the reason for your joy, what your hope is in your time
of trial? Ladies, our answers reveal the condition of our hearts and
the depth of our relationship with our Heavenly Father whether we realize
it or not. Silent lips and a stony countenance leave many questions in
the minds of others... What is the picture people are getting from the
portrait your life and lips are painting for them? Are your confident,
graceful answers filling the canvas with the testimony of the power of
Christ in your life? Is your joyful speech drawing others to the Savior,
thereby bringing them the same opportunity to find joy in their sufferings
as you've found in Christ?
In closing, isn't it a marvel that such a small thing as our answers can
have such a powerful affect on others - and our own selves too? I hope
you'll think about that today and then take a moment to follow the trail
of your words to see if they're echoes of joy... If not, you can change
that starting right now with the very next word out of your mouth!
Job 32:20, "I will speak, that I may be refreshed: I will open my lips
and answer."
God Bless,
Pam
Isaiah 60:1&2
Copyright 2000
Pamela A. Iannello
