We are told that we shouldn’t judge a book by its cover and I was guilty of doing just that.  Last week I saw an older man, by older I mean older than me, and he was well groomed and well dressed.  I immediately thought of him as a gentleman but then he opened his mouth and spoke.

I don’t know if he thought using vulgarities made him sound cool or young. It did neither.

The thought that came to mind was that he was immediately diminished by his speech. I didn’t even know him and I thought less of him. For right or for wrong, I immediately made judgements about his upbringing, his intelligence and his faith. 

Before you say I was hasty and judgemental, it was Jesus who told us in, Matthew 15:18–20 “But the words you speak come from the heart—that’s what defiles you.  For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all sexual immorality, theft, lying, and slander.  These are what defile you.”

As believers we have fairly specific guidelines on our speech. The Bible seems pretty clear in the words of Ephesians 4:29 “Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.”

Have a great week and remember: To see what is possible, you’ll have to attempt the impossible.