“Too much talk leads to sin. Be sensible and keep your mouth shut.”-Proverbs 10:19
Some of us enjoy talking. Others would rather not talk a lot. Whichever resonates with you, all of us use words to communicate. We communicate with words in one-on-one conversations, through text messages, emails, social media, and the like. What are we communicating? Does what we say and how we say it tend to convey that which builds up or tears down?
Whether we talk much or little, we are all instructed by God through His Word to watch what we say. The reality is, the more we say, the more chance there is that we sin. Proverbs 10:19 insightfully instructs us, saying, “Too much talk leads to sin. Be sensible and keep your mouth shut.” Isn’t that an important reminder! Oftentimes the wisest thing for us to do is just stop talking, to shut our “yappers” and listen. Why? Because too much talking inevitably leads to transgressions. No wonder God led James to write, “Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry” (James 1:19).
Here's the truth, every day there is an abundance of chatter. All we have to do is glance on Facebook, Twitter, or YouTube to know this. There is a copious amount of talking going on daily about all kinds of issues. What if there was more listening? What if we took more seriously God’s eternally wise instructions on being sensible by keeping our mouths shut? How would our world be different?
Through Christ who gives us strength, let’s talk less and listen more. Before we send the text, before we post more thoughts on social media, before we respond to the person we're communicating with, may we all be more sensible about talking less, pausing to consider, Is what I am about to say helpful? Are my words beneficial? Does what I am getting ready to communicate honor God? When we talk less, we have more time to listen. We have more time to think about the words we will use when we talk, words that will bring healing rather than hurting.
Godspeed, friends!
-Scott