My best friend is apart of the grammar police. She’s passionate, smart, lovely, and will make a comment when she sees a grammatical error. Hearing her comments every now and then cause me to think about how I can be quite critically observant about words. Was it judgmental, too harsh, hurtful, irrelevant? Was it unnecessary, mean? Then I look inward: What comes out of my mouth?

I read in Proverbs 16:24 that “Pleasant words are a honeycomb; sweet to the taste and health to the body.” There is something marvelous about words that build others up. Words of wisdom, kindness, grace. Words that bless and refresh. Words of truth, words of vulnerability. Words that display the love of Christ. Words that reflect an active relationship with God.

Matthew 12:34 always gets me: “Out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks.” Every time I read that I’m convicted or challenged to take a look at the words I speak, even the attitude behind them. Hallelujah that God is the one that changes my heart, thus changing my words, because if left up to me? Man. Not pleasant I bet.

Me, and you! We’ve been redeemed from the bondage of speak negative words. We can choose life! We have the power inside us to choose grace, to choose kindness. We have the Holy Spirit, who sweetens our speech.

Like Paul instructs in Ephesians to “only speak what is good for building up someone in need, so that it gives grace to those who hear.”

This can be difficult, I’m a poster child for it — in a heightened stress situation, an argument, a moment of exhaustion — but I DO still want to claim the power that lives inside of me to help me speak sweet words. You know, set a guard over my mouth, Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips (Psalm 141:3), that kind of prayer.

Here’s to taking a few extra seconds to pray before I open my mouth.

Can anyone relate?

p.s. still road trip daydreaming…