If you don’t have nothing nice to say

In the Disney classic film, “Bambi,” the adorable rabbit, Thumper repeatedly speaks before he thinks.

 Case in point, when Thumper offers his commentary on Bambi’s awkwardness as a new fawn, making some unkind remarks, we next see Thumper’s mother chastising him:

 “Thumper, what did your father tell you?”

Busted!

Thumper responds, looking down at the ground sheepishly, “if ya don’t got nothing nice to say, don’t say nothing at all.”

Out of the mouths of bunnies.

And how many of us, growing up, have heard that similar advice from a parent, a friend or a teacher?

Sounds simple enough: be nice, say nice things to others. But do our ears convey the sentiment to our brains, effectively, on a regular basis?

Eh, not so much.

And for those of us in the Christian community, we are, likewise, constantly reminded of Proverbs 18:21:

“Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.”

So, it should be old hat by now. It should be. But often, we seem to be short on our understanding and application of the concept, while being long-bunny ear long- on our hasty mouths and two cent opinions. Each one of us is guilty of being Thumper.

Words. We often choose to speak before we think, if we even think at all! However, we often lose sight of a spiritual consequence:

“Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from troubles.”

Proverbs 21:23

To break it down into some slang:

“Don’t start nothing, won’t be nothing!”

We underestimate the power of our words, only to learn the lesson of just what they carry. Each one of us has said things we want to take back. We have lost our temper, cussed, said things out of sarcasm and anger. And usually, we’re sorry and we want to take them back.

But the impact from those words leaves a mark, a wound and a scar. Indeed, how many of us spend our entire lives recovering such marks, wounds and scars?

“Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth!”

James 3:5

Yep, our tongues can set our lives ablaze with a hurtful, rash word.

But it’s not hopeless. Again, going back to Proverbs, each one of us needs to remember our words have power for not just death and destruction, but for life and healing as well. Words hurt. Words heal. We choose which direction to apply them.

And each one of us have had instances in which someone said something, gave us a compliment or a soothing bit of comfort- and it made ALL the difference!

“A man hath joy by the answer of his mouth: and a word spoken in due season, how good is it!”

Proverbs 15:23

We can do this in our lives on a regular basis, but it requires some work. It requires thought. It requires stopping to think about what we’re going to say.

 I love this sentiment below. I saw it passed around on Facebook and I just had to like and share it. Check it out:

Does what we’re going to say next improve or worsen things? No, we cannot control everything in life, including another person’s response to our words. Misunderstandings will occur. But we can make can effort, like the Hippocratic oath, to “do no harm” with what we say. That may mean you and I have to sacrifice giving someone a piece of our minds. It may mean not using a colorful four letter word. It may mean swallowing some pride and walking away.

And, when we’ve have blown it royally with our words- and we will blow it- it may mean saying “I’m sorry,” humbling ourselves for our wrong choices. None of these options are easy. And honestly, none of these options feels so great. But there’s a longer term result to keep in mind which goes beyond the short term, few seconds to blurt a wrong thing out. What damage can we avoid in the first place?

We can make a choice to not cause the harm. Or we can face the ramifications of what we’ve said.

Words are powerful and, once said, reverberate in our lives for years, even decades, to come. Which words do you want to be identified with? Yes, it requires soul searching, going to God.

“Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.”

Psalm 19:14

But taking this time, if for nothing else, to stop, breathe, and even count to ten, will leave us with less regrets than anything said in the heat of the moment.

Remember Thumper? Remember what his mother said to him?

“What did your father tell you?”

What is our Father, God, speaking to you right now about your words? What changes can you make regarding them today?

You are created in God’s Image. So live and speak that way!

Speak with love…

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Love never fails.”

1 Corinthians 13:4-8

Allow your words to be the love of God- and watch success blossom in your life!

Thumper, what do you say?

Copyright © 2014 by Sheryle Cruse