With Each Word You Have a Choice
This week in the Dispatch:
Being more like Jesus in “Quick Hits”
Walk On - a powerful, inspiring book
Two great podcasts this week
In Insights, I look at the power of our “Words”
Challenges to think and act on
A final thought that can change the world
This Week’s Quick Hits:
I wish I could claim this but I can’t. I cannot even find the author! Just enjoy!
This Year I Want to be Like Jesus:
Hang out with sinners.
Upset religious people.
Tell stories that make people think.
Choose unpopular friends.
Be kind, loving, and merciful.
Take naps on boats.
Book
Walk On by Ben Malcolmson
I read this book a couple of years ago when it first came out. Since we are in a compromised football season, it’s a perfect time to share this amazing story with you. Ben had not played football since fifth grade but now he was at USC and a reporter on the campus newspaper. As part of the role, he decided to write a story on the process of becoming a walk-on for the Trojan football team. At the end of tryouts, guess who made the team? Ben! He was never much of a game time contributor but he felt God placed him in this position for a reason. Through his years as a Trojan, then as he followed Coach Pete Carroll with the Seattle Seahawks organization, Ben worked others’ lives. This book is a powerful testament of how God uses His faithful people in the lives of others.
Podcast
Awesome Marriage Podcast
This week on the Awesome Marriage Podcast, Christina and I talk about “Speaking the Truth in Marriage.” When do we speak up and when do we need to keep quiet? Don't miss this episode, available wherever you listen to podcasts and at awesomewmarriage.com.
A Better Man Podcast
Join Colby Taylor and me this week as we talk about anger. At one time or another all of us as men deal with anger. The Bible tells us to “be angry and not sin.” What does that mean and how can we do that? You can watch the video on the Awesome Marriage YouTube Channel and listen to the audio on any of your favorite platforms.
Insights
Words are powerful. They can build up and they can tear down. Just a few words can change our lives.
“It’s a boy.” “Your tumor is benign.” “You got the job.” “We did all we could do.” “You’re fired.” “It’s stage four.”
Often we are just the next phone call away from something that will make or break our day. Text messages, social media posts, email and more bombard us with words. There are probably more words “out there” for all to see than ever before in the history of mankind. Words change friends into enemies. Words make us furious at someone we don’t even know. Words become our way of getting back or getting even. Words can put a distance between people that may never be healed. Words can also bridge gaps. Words can change the way we feel. Words can give us peace in the midst of chaos.
Today, I honestly cannot spend much time on social media. Thanks to technology, we all have our very own platform. We can say whatever we want to say. We have the power without the consequences. We can let anger and hostility roll off our fingers into the written word and no one can stop us. We can bash the left, the right or the middle, right from the comfort of our homes. When we get tired of fighting, we can end the fight with a click. We can hurt, offend, and insult others and never think anything about it. We act like we are at war; a war without any rules of engagement.
What if we stopped for a moment? What if we stepped back back and took a breath? What if we got out of the forest and looked at things from 30,000 feet? What if we asked, “What would Jesus do?” Don’t get me wrong, Jesus definitely got angry. But the interesting thing about Jesus’s anger is that He did not sin. He handled things differently. He did not like social injustice so He hung out with and ate with the outcasts of His time and He confused and challenged the pious leaders with His words and most of all, He showed love in the face of hate.
In his book Take Back Your Life, Levi Lesko says, “Your goal should be to use your words in such a way that they bless the heart of God, inspire faith in those around you, and make life better for those who are hurting.” You will speak plus or minus 16,000 words today. With each word you have a choice. Do you inspire or do you curse? Do you build up or do you tear down? Are you intentional or careless? Do you show love or hate? It’s your choice. What will you do?
Challenge:
What are some of the words that have changed your life?
How have your words changed someone else's life?
What words can you say today that will show love?
Final Thought
Sometimes I think that what I do or say does not make a difference. After all, I am one person and one voice. Yet, when we join together, we can make an impact. We can evoke change. We can start with our words because they are powerful. They can change the world. Just look at what Jesus did!
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