Monday, November 29, 2010

Chit Chat



On any given day we engage in gobs and gobs of chit chat. Be it with children, our spouses, our co-workers, with God, or even ourselves - unless we are sleeping or silently meditating, we are chit chatting with someone or something. Sometimes it is verbal, sometimes it is non-verbal in the form of thoughts or actions - but still chit chatting away. We all know our actions speak louder than words. If we think about, something as seemingly simple and small as daily interactions and conversations, or even short little sentences, can have a huge impact on our lives.

Today I set out with the goal of actually paying attention to the conversations I had. To actually make them meaningful and pay attention to the words I was so flippantly throwing out there. How did it go? Terrible. By the time I had been at work for an hour, I had spent an hour talking to a co-worker, most of which was gossipy type stuff, and none of which was constructive in any way. I didn’t even think about it during the rest of my day, until I sat down to write tonight. I don’t know about you, but today was a major discovery for me that the majority of conversations I have throughout the day are not purposeful and may even be destructive. Ouchy…conviction cuts like a knife sometimes! But I am so glad it does, lest I move through my life making the same mistakes over and over again.

So, with that said, it is my goal this week to be mindful of my conversations. To pay attention to what I say, and not let things slip through my mouth that aren’t purposeful or worse yet, destructive. I want my words to be a tree of life, not mindless chit chatter. Even with the words I speak to myself, I can choose to crush my own spirit or water the tree. I pasted a few verses below to be my reminders…and hope you will find them insightful as well! Blessings and love always! Stephanie


Ephesians 4:29 “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.”

Colossians 4:6 “Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.”

James 3:9-12 “With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.”


Proverbs 15:4 “The soothing tongue is a tree of life, but a perverse tongue crushes the spirit.”

Ecclesiastes 5:2 “Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few.”


Chit chat - seemingly trivial as a word, but huge implications.

4 comments:

  1. AWWWWWW...scripture is food for my soul! I am reading ME AND MY BIG MOUTH by Joyce Myer and God has really convicted me through that.
    Thanks for sharing!
    xo

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  2. I love this too...not so much for the chit chat (sometimes) but more the passage in James...oh that hits...thanks for the reminder...be blessed.
    p.s. visiting from Jen's, I don't think we've 'met';) Abby

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  3. Thanks girlys! I just love scripture too, it has that amazing quality of speaking to a bajillion different people in a bajillion different ways. God is so awesome like that!

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  4. Today I was convicted about how I let my own junk spill out of my mouth and cause pain to others. It definitely gives me renewed motivation to get the junk out in a healthy way. These verses sweeten the journey.

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