“Do you see someone who is hasty in speech?  There is more hope for a fool than for anyone like that.” Proverbs 29:20

I can’t remember when I first read the Dr. Seuss quote, “Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind”.  Without much thought, I’ve always accepted the quote as a truism.  Then, this past Christmas, I received a special gift from a fellow parish nurse – a small paperback devotional book which has caused me to reflect on the ‘say what you feel’ part of the quote.

The book is called – Thirty Days to Taming Your Tongue: What You Say (and Don’t Say) Will Improve Your Relationships.  I had no idea that the Bible had so much to say about mouths, lips and tongues but as the title suggests, the author, Deborah Smith Pegues, describes 30 negative ways of speaking and recommends that we eliminate one per day for 30 days.  Half-truths, argumentative language, gossiping, slander, belittling, self-absorbed or doubting words, rude or cynical talk, and intimidation are just some of the verbal transgressions described.  Each reading has short stories, anecdotes, soul-searching questions and a scripturally based affirmation.

Day Four is all about the Hasty Tongue.  The scripture lesson is above.  Pegues points out that God gave us two ears and one mouth.  She suggests that, “perhaps we are to spend twice as much time listening than talking.”

The book concludes with a list of 33 positive ways to ‘engage our tongues’.  My plan is to include them in my goals for the coming year.  Some of these positive actions include praying, expressing gratitude, apologizing, telling the truth, offering assistance, keeping a secret, confronting a personal conflict, defending someone against negative criticism, applauding someone’s achievements – and many more.

Blessings,

Lynn Franklin, Parish Nurse