I heard a fable about a man who was near death and he wanted to make everything right before he died.  He went to the King and asked what he must do.  The king told him to put a big bag of goose feathers at the doorstep of everyone he had ever harmed with words.  The man took many bags to many doorsteps.  Finally he finished the task and went back to the king.  “Now, what must I do?” he asked.

            The king replied, “Go back and gather up all of the bags.”  So the man went from door to door, trying to find each bag of goose feathers.  He could not find a single one.  So he went back to the king and told him there were no goose feathers to be found.  The king responded, “So it is with your words.  They are carried on the wind, never to be taken back.”

            Of course, this is just a story, but the point is well taken.  Wrong words are hard to retrieve.  Angry words can hurt, harm and wound.  They are not soon forgotten.  Harsh words stir up strife, break down marriages and can even start wars.  We are “snared by the words of our mouths” (Proverbs 6:2).

            If we knew every word spoken would come to pass, I’m sure we would choose our words carefully.  “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh”  (Matthew 12:34).  Words reflect what is in the heart.  Words can build or destroy.  Words can encourage or discourage.  The words we speak bring life and light or darkness and sorrow.

            It’s hard for someone to achieve success if he is surrounded by words of defeat, ridicule and rejection.   

            Wrong words stir up hostility.  “Hatred stirreth up strifes: but love covereth all sins”  (Proverbs 10:12)

 Replacing hate with love would solve a multitude of problems. “Pleasant words are as an honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones”  (Proverbs 16:24).  Pleasant words restore the soul.  They soothe difficult circumstances.  They leave a sense of well being.  They calm down an angry person.

How about worry words?  They are joy stealers big time.  Worrying is agreeing with the enemy and saying what he says.  Worrying nullifies prayers.  Insanity has been defined as doing the same thing over and over, but expecting different results.  God honors prayers that are prayed in believing faith.

            Children especially need the right kind of words.  Their sensitive spirits are easily wounded and are often carried into adulthood, resulting in personality dysfunction.  I had a rule in my classroom, “If we can’t say something nice about someone, we’ll not say anything at all.”  One of my students didn’t like the way another player always lost the ball.  He ran to me to complain, but he had second thoughts, stopped short and said, “Teacher, he sure does sweat good!”

            Words have power to hurt and power to heal.  God has put within each one of us the power to stop negative thoughts and words.  With the Greater One in us, we can fight the battle and win with conquering thoughts and speech.

            I want my words to heal, help and encourage.  Even though I may stumble and fall, I will get right back up and start over.  I have the power of choice with the words that I use.

            So here are my words for you, dear reader,

“You are a wonderful and amazing human being, created by God.  May you be blessed today.  May you know the height, depth and breadth of his amazing love.  “May God supply all of your needs according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus”  (Philippians 4:19).

            Take your heart with you today in everything you say.  Your “mental sunshine” will bring many blessings to you and to others.