Recently, I received a call from one of our daughters. She was deeply upset. Her four-year-old had a painful splinter but wouldn’t let her get it out. When our children were small, we never had difficulty with those things. I was always honest with them about the pain and they trusted me. So, this was a painful splinter on several levels.

Our daughter felt helpless. She was afraid that the splinter was going to cause an infection. But there was a deeper hurt. She felt that her son didn’t trust her the way that she and her siblings had trusted me when they were small. This was a painful splinter for them both.

Fortunately, I received a subsequent call of victory. Our grandson trusted Mommy, was brave, and, before long, the splinter was out. No tears were even shed and the healing had begun… for both of them.

Splinters cause pain if left untreated. It will cause deterioration, scars, and even death if left for long enough.

Our words can be painful splinters. Sometimes they are just surface splinters that sting a little, but come out quickly and easily. Other splinters sink deeper. They cause deep wounds, pain, scars, and even death. “The tongue can bring death or life; those who love to talk will reap the consequences.” Proverbs 18:21.

Although it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to understand that our words can hurt others, sometimes we wound others because we are thoughtless. We speak without thinking. And we don’t pay attention to those around us or how our words might wound another. “Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent.” Proverbs 17:28.

And sometimes we harm others with our words because we are attempting to build ourselves up. By tearing others down, we think it makes us look more important. “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” Luke 14:11.

At times, our words hurt others because we gossip. We tell the most recent story and maybe even embellish a little, all to make ourselves look/sound important. “Whoever goes about slandering reveals secrets, but he who is trustworthy in spirit keeps a thing covered.” Proverbs 11:13.

We also say harsh things in anger that wound others. We might say that we didn’t mean it, but that doesn’t lessen the severity of the pain caused by our words. And it doesn’t make it acceptable before God. “for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” James 1:20.

Scripture tells us to use caution with the words that we speak to others. “Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger” James 1:19.

And if we are not slow to speak, we will give an account for those careless words one day. “I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, “ Matthew 12:36.

God gave us the ability to speak. Everything that God has given us was created for His glory. God created man in His own image… to glorify Him! He gave us speech so that we could communicate to others… about Him! “But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,” 1 Peter 3:15.

God created our speech for another reason too. Through speech, God gave us the ability to confess our sins with our mouth. It also provides us with a way to proclaim Jesus as Lord so that we can be forgiven and have a personal relationship with Him. “For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is save” Romans 10:10.

I am afraid that, over the course of my life, I have left behind more painful splinters than a lumber mill. Forgive me, Jesus!

Father, we praise You that You created us in Your perfect and Holy image. Forgive us that we fall so short of perfection. Father, forgive us for all the splinters that our words have left behind. Forgive us for glorifying ourselves and disregarding others… especially You. Forgive us for speaking in haste and hurting those around us. And Father, forgive us for robbing You of glory! Lord Jesus, thank You for paying the price for our sins! Thank you for loving us the way that the Father loves You. Holy Spirit, help us to guard our tongue. Forgive us when we disregard Your leading to be quiet. Help us to listen more than we speak. Let our words be like a sweet honeycomb to those who need to hear love from You, not a painful splinter.

“Kind words are like honey— sweet to the soul and healthy for the body” Proverbs 16:24 (NLT). Be glorified Lord, we pray this in your precious and holy name Jesus.

Do you have a painful splinter left over from someone else’s words? Perhaps you have many. Or perhaps, like me, you have left many behind. Please go to our Life Preserve page (https://forgiven-n-loved.com/life-preserver/). You will find a prayer outlined on that page. Please pray that prayer. God wants to forgive you for the splinters you have left behind. He wants to heal the wounds from splinters that others have left. He loves you and wants to have an intimate, personal, relationship with you. God wants to speak with you! So, please pray that prayer and, once you have, reach out to me at admin@Forgiven-N-Loved.com and let me know. I’d love to be in prayer with and for you.

Luv Ya!