Epiphany
January 2, 2016

Scripture Reading: Psalm 19

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
   be acceptable to you,
   O Lord, my rock and my redeemer. –Psalm 19:14

How often I have prayed these words but they never grow outdated or stale. Sometimes I couple them with Psalms 141:3 Set a guard over my mouth, O Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips. Or James 1:26 If any think they are religious, and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless.

Words are important, not only for the facts they may or may not communicate, but also for the damage they can do that sometimes can never be undone. I dashed off a quick email to someone just yesterday volunteering my help in doing some writing. When I just perchance reread it after sending it, I found wrong words that in this case made the sentences nonsense but in other cases could have changed the whole meaning of what was intended.

There are a lot of words floating around through our world today probably resulting from fear and frustration or perhaps hopelessness, but that are hurtful to some and incendiary for others. If ever we have needed this scripture and God’s abiding presence guiding our language it is now.

Words, too, can be healing and soothing, lessening fear and giving hope. Let us strive to salt our language with these words.

Prayer: Lord, you challenged us to be the salt of the earth. Help us season the world with our words derived from your love. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized 
Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council 
of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights 
reserved.