I can't remember who said it, or even what they said. But I know it was something negative, and she took it to heart. She took it so much to heart that she let one statement define who she was for a long time in her life.
Why is it that you can be in a group of people and one person say something nice to you and someone else say something negative, and it's the negative person that we remember.
I can remember times when people may have said something to me that was hurtful and it can be hard to get past.
Words have so much more power than we give them credit for.
The bible tells us the tongue is like a sword, and it really is, because when we say something hurtful to someone, it can be almost impossible to take it back. We can apologize of course and most likely we will be forgiven. But sometimes harsh words are hard to forget.
I am so far from perfect, but this is one thing that I have tried so hard to remember when I am talking to my kids, or any young person. It's amazing how a kind word can bring a smile to someones face.
It isn't always easy to control our tongues, maybe there is something to be said for stopping and counting to 10. If we could just step back and take a few minutes to think about what we are going to say, maybe it could save someone else a little unnecessary pain.
So I am going to try harder to only say positive things.
Because like momma says, "If you don't have anything nice to say, then don't say anything at all."
Could you come 'guest' speak at our youth meeting?...this is such a wonderful lesson! :o)
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