Just as the title says, I gave up words for a day. Since month one in Battambang the Lord has been speaking to me a lot about words. How they should only be used to glorify God and that they’re not always necessary. One of the first days in Ethiopia, we all went into the training center that is being built and wrote scriptures all over the walls. The place was being filled with prayer and worship. Sitting on an open ledge, I opened my bible and let the wind decide where to take me. It flipped right open to Ecclesiastes 5:7 which says “Much dreaming and many words are meaningless. Therefore stand in awe of God”. It was in this time that I heard the Lord telling me I needed to fast words. So I did. After the fast I can say that it was definitely harder than I expected but opened my eyes to a lot.
The biggest take away I got from doing this was how much power words have. I realized that words are meant to be good, but it’s us who make words evil and meaningless. We use words to build others up and to spread the Gospel, but words can and are often used to tear others down and bring glory to yourself. This is something I really wish I had perspective earlier on in my life. Words control lives and can hold people captive in their circumstances. Society as a whole uses words harshly to judge one another. Gossip is spread by words, it’s like a thick black smoke that creeps over you and once it’s there it stays and doesn’t leave. Proverbs 8:8 says “all the words of my mouth are just; none of them crooked or perverse” We are supposed to use words for good, not evil. Being able to discern what words are good and what words will hurt is what this time really helped me see. I noticed how not being able to join in on conversation as if you weren’t even there makes you feel powerless and defenseless. In the same sense though, if you are feeling like you must defend yourself then it’s really the heart of the person that is speaking hurtful words who needs to check that. All talk and conversation should in some way bring you and the people around you closer to God. He gave us words and made them a powerful tool that we can use to build Kingdom, not tear it down. In Ecclesiastes it also says how there is a time for everything. A time to be silent and a time to be speak up. Use this and Jesus’s life as an example. Words should speak truth, love, and light, not death. Think about if you forfeited all surface level talk and let only words that come from God out of your mouth. Think of how that will affect the people around you. Only in good things come from that. If you slow down and think about each word before it comes out I guarantee that you will stop yourself before hurting someone with your words.
I really enjoyed the time that I didn’t speak because it forced me to really sit and listen to God. I had to look at myself and see all the times where my words wouldn’t bring Kingdom. I realized after time passed it didn’t matter that I didn’t say anything anyway. Take a second each day and think about how you can use the power behind your words for good. We were given words for a reason and it is to make them meaningful, not meaningless.
