Devotionals for the Heart: The Power of Words and Kindness

Words, How Do You Use Them?
A devotional by Tammy Karasek

When words are spoken in haste, they can either edify or tear down. Yet once spoken, they cannot be retrieved. Have you ever been hurt by people’s words? I know I have been crushed.

I have one of those memory banks that are both a blessing and a curse. I tend to remember just about everything. And I do mean EVERYTHING — both good and bad. The harder I try to forget the bad, the more it seems to commit to staying. I could probably list more times of hurtful words than my poor writing hand could handle.

Now that I’m much more mature in age, I have been purposely trying to go to those memories and see if the comments were truth or if they were lies. Then those that were not true, prayerfully choose to let the words go. I’ve tried to see where the person was coming from. Some times they were thrown out as an opinion, other times; there may have been slight truth to the comment. I’m sure soon after the person spewed out the harsh comments, they moved on. I, on the other hand, have given those words way too much time replaying in my mind. I’ve realized that the more I’ve held the memory, the more the memory has held me . . . and my heart.

I’m grateful to God those hurtful situations are mostly gone from my memory. But you see it’s the deep hurtful words, the words spoken to the heart by those we love that are the hardest to let go. They were spoken. And sadly, remembered. Yet, through prayer, they can diminish as well.

Recently I read this verse in my daily quiet time with God:

“Do not pay attention to every word people say, or you may hear your servant cursing you — for you know in your heart that many times you yourself have cursed others.” 

~Ecclesiastes 7:21-22 

Wow! That’s big.

It tells me to not pay such close attention to every word spoken, because I may hear “cursing” — or hurtful words. Then the second verse says that I know I’ve done this same thing.

Wait, what did that say?

Did that just say that I know I’ve done it, too? No way – not me. I love words. I wouldn’t do that. I know the pain of mean comments, so I for sure wouldn’t do that. Would I? Have I?

Yes, God says I’ve done it, too. Oh, how I did not like reading that. That verse really caught my attention and has made me slow down before I speak too soon. Will the words I’m about to say help or hurt the person. If they may hurt, are they necessary for growth? If not, I don’t say them.

Some words are necessary to hear for our good, but if they’re hurtful and untrue, will you give them to God first? Let Him show you if it was given in truth and something you needed to hear. Do not let them consume your heart.

Harsh and hurtful words are going to be flung at us. That is a guarantee. Yet scripture reminds us that we‘re going to fling ‘em, too.

As I’m learning to “not pay attention to every word people say” as the verse above says, may I encourage you to do the same? And I’m not off the hook either; I also need to remember to not flippantly throw out those possible hurtful words to others.

What are your thoughts on words? I’d love to hear what you think in the comments below.

~*~
Author bio: 

You’ll find Tammy seeing humor and causing laughter in every aspect of life. Tammy’s past filled with bullying and criticism is the driving force of her passion to always encourage others and share with them the Reason to smile. 

She’s been blissfully wedded to her college sweetheart, Larry, for 36 years, mom to their grown daughter, Kristen and wrapped around the paw of a little puppy named Hattie. 

She’s the President of Cross N Pens Christian Writers and a member of ACFW. She will be published in the 2018 Divine Moments book – Cool-nary Moments.
~*~
Connect with Tammy:
Blog - http://www.tammykarasek.com
Twitter - https://twitter.com/tickledpinktam
Email - tickledpinktammy@gmail.com

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Introducing Laura Thomas, devotional writer with food for thought

Let's welcome Laura Thomas to the blog! She's an author, wife, mother and all around awesome person! Laura's agreed to share a devotional that she wrote for every first Wednesday of the month starting this Jan. 4, 2017.

I'm going to let Laura introduce herself to you, in her own words. After you read her introduction post, please leave a welcome message for Laura in the comment section toward the end of this blog post.

God bless you! :)

Now, here's Laura...

I am rather a late bloomer in the world of writing. Growing up in England, I was a total bookworm as a child, and had a secret dream of being an author one day—a secret I kept under wraps for about 25 years! My husband finally unearthed my writing dream over coffee one day, and encouraged me to pursue my passion. What? I was homeschooling my kids at the time, worship director at church, and had zero room for anything else—but I felt a stirring in my heart, and eventually completed a couple of correspondence courses with the Institute of Children’s Literature, which set me on the path to being a “real” writer!

It didn’t take me long to discover my love for writing in many genres—I honestly thought I would be a children’s author initially, and had many stories and articles published in children’s magazines. I always had a strong desire to put good morals and Biblical principals into my work, and was thrilled when Dancing With Bear Publishing published my Christian teen fiction trilogy: Tears to Dancing, Tears of a Princess and Tears, Fears, and Fame. They were closely followed by my middle grade fiction book, The Candle Maker, set in Victorian England.

So what about the grown-ups? I’ve been blogging since 2012, and thoroughly enjoy writing my thoughts and sharing my faith with my readers. In 2014, my daughter got married, and Pearls for the Bride was published—a book for brides-to-be and newlyweds from a mother’s perspective. It was such a joy to dig into the Word and draw from my own marriage to offer some “pearls of wisdom”, along with a good dose of humor (a necessity in any marriage). This past summer, I wrote Diamond Devos 31—a FREE e-book devotional featuring 31 days in Proverbs 31 as a source of encouragement to my sisters of all ages. I hope you’ll check it out on my website! Did I mention it’s free?

Writing devotionals is a passion and a privilege to me. As well as writing for my own blog and several Christian magazines and websites, I’ve been honored to write almost 60 devotionals for Union Gospel Press for children, teens, and adults. For me it’s a win-win because I get to share what God has laid on my heart from His Word, which hopefully encourages and inspires the reader, while preaching to myself.

I have much to learn, and being teachable is key, especially as a devo writer. I have been journaling my own daily quiet times with the Lord for several years (mainly because I have a horrible memory so have write it down), and this has become a beautiful source of inspiration for me. When Alexis asked me to write here once-a-month for her monthly devotional slot, I was more than happy to agree. I hope you’ll join us here on the first Wednesday of each month, and I pray that the “food” for thought (my devotionals) will be nourishment for your soul.

Blessings and joy,

Laura