Day of Praise

Mon, 07/24/17, "Day of Praise"

"Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones." - Proverbs 16:24

As I begin to write this, I wonder if I should because I can hear multiple replies coming back to me, asking me if I'm talking about a revelation in the world of sport, or a court decision on marriage, or about a comment that was made to me recently. 

No. I'm not talking to anybody or any situation in the news or any comment in particular. The scriptures I "pick" come from random sources, so I have no idea what scripture is going to pop up. 

What popped up is "Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones" (Proverbs 16:24). 

And what immediately popped into my mind is that I do not like to be called "sweet," except by my wife and daughters and a very few others. 

I have hard conversations with my son from time to time. I try to be calm and clear about my sentiments and what needs to be done. I am calm and clear. Not sweet. 

I had a hard conversation with my next door neighbor one time. I was calm and clear about my sentiments and what I hoped would be done. I was calm and clear. Not sweet. 

I was encouraging to a sister in Christ recently. I was calm and clear about God's sentiments toward an injustice done to her...an injustice done to her in the name of Jesus, no less. I was calm and clear and encouraging. Not sweet. 

I don't take myself too seriously though, so I laugh, as I know at least four people who are going to read this and then come to me today and call me "sweet." Just to get under my skin. We'll laugh. And I'll poke some fun back at them. But that's fun, not sweet. 

But as much I don't like to be called "sweet," it is just that much that I do like to speak sweet words. Gracious words. Healing words. After all, like God says, "Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones" (Proverbs 16:24).

I know from experience how sweet words, gracious words, healing words are game changers. Life changers. 

Now, don't get me wrong. My flesh doesn't always like to hear these sweet, gracious, healing, and life changing words. I mean, who wants to be told they're a sinner, even if you tell me in a sweet way?!?!?!?

I've stopped counting how many times I've talked to someone and said, "God says that what you're doing doesn't work. And as such, it's sin." 

What I've stopped counting is how many times a person responds with, "I'm not a bad person." 

So I have to say, "I didn't say you were bad. I said you're sinning. And you're not going to see all the awesome things that God has prepared for you unless you repent and ask God to keep sending His Holy Spirit to change your heart and your ways."

I mean, who likes to hear that, no matter how sweet you say it to me or me to you?

And yet, I am so thankful for people who were in my life (God, give rest to their souls) and people who are in my life who, well...who were calm and clear and spoke to me. Words that, ironically, I didn't want to hear. Because they were hard to hear. Because they went against the grain of what the world might accept and support. 

They were words that went against what, on the one hand, are actions that may seem harmless to me, but, on the other hand, are actions that God says plainly are the ruin of my soul. 

And when those hard words, God's words, were spoken calmly and clearly to me, they became sweet words, gracious words, healing words. Game changers. Life changers.

So ya see, because sweet words have been spoken to me, I am, like you are, honored to have the opportunity to calmly and clearly speak sweet words to somebody else. 

Just, please, please, don't call me sweet. 

"Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones." - Proverbs 16:24

Praise God!