Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. Ephesians 4:29 ESV

Gracious words are like honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body. Proverbs 16:24 ESV

For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. Matthew 12:34b ESV

Our verses for today tell us how we should talk to others. In the first verse from Ephesians, Paul is writing a letter to the people at the Christian church at Ephesus. He tells them to not say anything bad to anyone, no bad words, or mean things, or hurtful things. Did anyone ever say something mean or hurtful to you? How did it make you feel? Paul asks us to say only good things that will make someone feel better. And when we do that, we are actually giving grace to them!

Grace is when we get something we really don’t deserve. God loves you unconditionally, that means no matter what you do, He still loves you! God’s grace gives you forgiveness when you do something bad, salvation, and eternal life with Him one day. He gives us grace and all we have to do is believe in Him and Jesus.

How does it feel to know you are loved by God so much? How does it feel to be forgiven for something you did that you wish you hadn’t?

Because we have been given God’s love and grace, we can give it to the people we talk to. When I was a kid, I had an older sister and two younger brothers, we would sometimes fuss at each other and get upset. My mom’s advice to all of us was, “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything.” In other words, it is better to say nothing than to say something mean and hurt someone’s feelings.

But Paul asks us to go even a step further than my mom. Paul says that as Christians, who have received God’s grace, we should say kind and encouraging words with love to others, even if they haven’t been kind to us. When I taught school, sometimes if a child got very angry, he would say, “I hate you!” But I usually said, “I’m so sorry you feel that way, because I love you and am glad you are in my class!” And my gracious words were sweet like honeycomb and usually got a smile and an apology.

This week, speak love to others like Jesus. He spoke our third verse which tells us that our mouths speak what is in our hearts. If love is in our hearts we will speak love to others, like Jesus.

Blessings and love as you speak kindness and encouragement to others!