Good Words

"Anxiety in a man's heart weighs it down, but a good word makes it glad." - Proverbs 12:25

In the last two weeks I have seen this to be true. I have been with parents who sat in the hospital by their newborn as it fought life-threatening sickness with their only rest coming from the words of assurance that their God is with them and their church family loves them and is praying and standing by them regardless of their situation.

I have been with single dads and moms who have been through the ringer, so to speak, with the legal system draining everything they've worked for, their estranged spouses spreading confusion and then finding rest in the comfort of words that remind them that they are good and they are Gods...as they are.

I have sat and listened to dozens of personal stories from people who have been told over and over how wrong they are about this or that in their life and left with their heart heavy, filled with anxiety, and hurting, only to hear words of life that God really loves us as we are and we can't change that by believing a certain religious doctrine or following a prescribed way of doing church. But God is patient, tolerant, and kind waiting for us to hear His voice and come to Him.

I believe we can look at this proverb and accurately deduct that if it is words that bring the gladness to the heart, it it also the words that can bring the anxiety. The Bible teaches us that we will give an account of everything we say; that the tongue can be used for both blessing and cursing; that it is a hard thing to control; that it usually controls our life; and that a tree cannot bear both bitter and sweet fruit. Jesus reminded us that whatever we had in our heart would eventually come out our mouth.

The age old saying stands true: "Four things come not back: the spoken word; the speeding arrow; time past; the neglected opportunity."

Branches Church has come about because God has opened an opportunity for the doors to the Kingdom of God to be opened wider in this area. The Holy Spirit led our hearts to hear that call and we answered. But, there is nothing we can do to gain time back, to re-do yesterday, to go back to the way life was when it seemed easier or simple or worry free. There is nothing a person can do about choices made, once they were made the "arrow was speeding" and there it is. And so it is with the spoken word. We cannot get them back. But we do have a choice to control what they are BEFORE we speak them.

Branches is committed to being a safe, authentic, accepting, and growing place...

So, if our words are creating heaviness or anxiety in the hearts of others...let's be careful to consider the condition of our own eye before we try and clear the vision in another persons eye. The writer of Proverbs also said that a wise person doesn't broadcast what they think is knowledge, only a fool does that because it may be folly, and not knowledge at all.

"May the words of my mouth and the thoughts of my heart be pleasing to You, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer." - Psalm 19:14