words...

oh how many sermons have i sat through...blowing bubbles with gum in an attempt to busy myself with having "heard this over and over and OVER again" and yet still...words hang me up on a daily basis

have i learned? do i know to the core of my being that the word i speak out of turn might very well make or break the moment? i THINK i know this but still PHOEWOEP! and out it comes...

i say this because i realized in my youth that i had believed myself to have been not one who would speak my mind. i was more or less timid and not wanting to step on anyones toes, not out of any kind of false "nicety" or any such nonsense...no, i was nice out of my own sense of uber sensitivity and "if i don't hurt you maybe you won't hurt me" mentality. being careful of one's words out of fear of being hurt does not equal discretion even in the most remote sense of the word.

we pride ourselves, in this society, at whether or not we are "socially aware" or what-have-you...bottom line: the scripture which says "out of the depths of the heart the mouth speaks" is true - whether you are a "Word" believer or not, if you examine the motives of your heart and the words spoken from your mouth this is something you'll see...

thus, turning away from an unjust cutting word does not always make me "nice or polite" any more than it makes me cowardly and manipulative. just as "speaking your mind" does not make you any more honest or straightforward than thoughtless and abrupt...these are just ripples from the stone dropped at the center of our being...who we are is going to remain the same unless we value and learn these lessons passed on from those who are wiser than we.

however there IS a balance. words spoke in truth and love do become honesty and straightforward - words NOT spoken out of gentility and concern DO become "niceties"

smile. that's the nice things about being human. there's a balance for every counterbalance