Welcome to 7 Days Time.
Today, we will be talking about vomit.
Whoa, whoa, whoa! WAIT! Don’t leave. We aren’t talking about THAT kind of well, ya know… (Sheesh, give me some credit, man. Gross.)
I’m talking about WORD vomit. You know, that flow of words that just seems to bubble up out of the depths of your being and spew everywhere before you can say, “I think I’m going to be sick.”
Something that I am (unfortunately) pretty familiar with. SIGH.
For me, gross word yakking situations happen when I let my circumstances dictate my attitude.
And when my heart isn’t in the right place.
Which brings us to today’s Hidden Ah-Ha Bible Verse…
“A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart.
For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.“
~Luke 6:45
I’ve always heard “What goes down in the well comes up in the bucket.” And this Scripture backs that statement up.
Because this “word-vomit” problem isn’t a vocabulary issue… it’s a heart issue.
Oftentimes, when we are saying words that are not helpful, encouraging or loving, it is an indication that our heart isn’t quite right. Maybe we skipped Quiet Time that morning. Or are harboring unrepented sin. Or Satan has wedged his slimy self into our attitude.
Whatever the reason, it’s not ok. And something needs to be done.
Because the mouth speaks what our heart is full of.
If our heart is full of gratitude, love, joy, peace, that is what we will speak. If it is overflowing with anger, bitterness, impatience… well, you get my drift.
Now, don’t beat yourself up for this. God isn’t calling us to be perfect… because let’s be honest, that ain’t gonna happen. (As much as I would like to convince myself otherwise.) BUT when we are self-aware and realize what we are saying, we can be proactive to fill our hearts with good God-things.
The truth is that the more God we have in our heart, the less room we have for the gunk.
And then the words we speak breathe life into those around us. Which puts more God in their heart, removes a little gunk… and the cycle grows in a positive direction.
Think about the last 24 hours… what kind of words have you spoken to your spouse? Your kids? Your co-workers? Your neighbor? Yourself??
Were they God-honoring, fruit-of-the-spirit-filled words of love? Or were they judgmental, harsh, or snippy?
If I’m being completely honest with myself (which I always try to do here at 7 Days Time) I would have to say my words in the last 24 hours were a combo of the two categories. Sigh.
So I leave you with this prayer…
“Father, cleanse my heart. Remove all of the junk and fill it with you. Help me to be slow to speak, quick to listen and slow to anger. Equip me to recognize when my words aren’t YOUR words. I pray, Lord, that just as Christ gave His life for us, that my words would be life-giving and hope-filled. In your precious name, AMEN.”
If this is something you struggle with, please feel free to copy/paste/print it out and pray it daily until your words are words that Christ would be pleased to hear you speak.
And be encouraged, friends… we have taken the first step. We recognize that the mouth speaks what the heart is full of…
We know it’s not a vocabulary issue. It’s a heart issue.
An issue that Christ is ready to help us resolve.
Speaking His Truth,
SGK
“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” ~Proverbs 4:23 NIV
