“Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” – Ephesians 4:29 NIV
As was the case at the beginning of this journey, I had to return to the proverbial depths of humanity to find inspiration for this post. While venturing back to Twitter to check on Justin Forsett’s latest verse for the day, I came across a post that I really enjoyed, and I thought merited shining a light on. It is a post from Nicky Gumbel, someone that I have read and followed for many years and believe is a wonderful north star for my faith journey. The post read as follows, “Before you speak: THINK. T: is it True? H: is it Helpful? I: is it Inspiring? N: is it Necessary? K: is it Kind.” Yes, it’s a little corny, but I think it’s on point for what we need to hear these days.
This lesson from Ephesians seems quaint in today’s world. So much of our time and energy is spent trying to tear each other down. Just in the last few weeks I have found myself guilty of the following: workplace gossip, gabbing to friends about a sports coach that I was convinced needed to be fired, venting on a contractor who messed up some work. Now granted, life’s not always sunshine and rainbows, and we do need to stand up for ourselves. But how did Jesus do these things? With messages of servitude, patience and humility. Turn the other cheek, don’t throw stones, etc.
This call to T-H-I-N-K is something that we should all consider in our own lives as an antidote to modern discourse and an answer to Paul’s call to us that we “build others up.”
What Lies Before 