Over ten years ago, I suffered a TIA, commonly referred to in the medical field as a mini-stroke. When my husband made calls to inform family, the first question from one of my sister’s was, “Can she talk?” He assured her that I could, and her response was, “Then she will be alright.” I could have taken that one of two ways, but I knew exactly what she meant.
The focus of this article is the positive aspects of the God-given ability to talk. Like everything else that God has given us, the ability to speak ranks high on the list of priceless blessings. Those of us who can talk cannot imagine not being able to speak. Even an occasional bout with laryngitis causes us much stress and frustration. Talking is as natural for us as breathing.
The Psalms and God’s wisdom Book of Proverbs calls our attention to some of the beauties of the ability to talk.
- Psalm 71:23-24 – “My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing to You and my soul, which You have redeemed. My tongue also shall talk of Your righteousness all the day long.”
- Psalm 77:11-12 – “I will remember the works of the LORD; Surely I will remember Your wonders of old. I will also meditate on all Your work, and talk of Your deeds.”
- Psalm 105:1-2 – “Oh, give thanks to the LORD! Call upon His name; Make known His deeds among the peoples! Sing to Him, sing psalms to Him; Talk of all His wondrous works!”
- Psalm 145:10-11 – “All Your works shall praise You, O LORD, and Your saints shall bless You. They shall speak of the glory of Your kingdom and talk of Your power.”
- Proverbs 15:23 – “A man has joy by the answer of his mouth, and a word spoken in due season, how good it is!”
- Proverbs 10:19 – “In the multitude of words sin is not lacking, but he who restrains his lips is wise.”
- Proverbs 15:28a – “The heart of the righteous studies how to answer.”
- Proverbs 20:15 – “There is gold and a multitude of rubies, but the lips of knowledge are a precious jewel.”
- Proverbs 21:23 – “Whoever guards his mouth and tongue keeps his soul from troubles.”
- Proverbs 24:26 – “He who gives a right answer kisses the lips.”
- Proverbs 25:1 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”
- Proverbs 25:15 – “By long forbearance a ruler is persuaded, and a gentle tongue breaks a bone.”
James 3:1-12 indicts us on the use and misuse of the tongue in our ability to talk. We need to read these 12 verses every day because we talk every day. Talking is a byproduct of our thinking. Jesus said, “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks” (Matthew 12:34b).
Also referring to the words we speak, Jesus said in Matthew 12:37, “For by your words you will be justified and by your words you will be condemned.” Notice Jesus said by our words, not somebody else’s words, not what somebody else said that we said, but our own words will justify or condemn us.
Paul told the saints in Colossians 4:6, “Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one.” Have we ever given real deep, concentrated thought to how much time, energy and effort it takes to fulfill that divine expectation? Do we want to enrich and improve our conversations? Talk about God and His Word every day.
