The "C" Word
I've been thinking a great deal lately about the power of words. As a person who loves words, it's not an unusual thought for me. I'm often looking for just the right one to express what I'm feeling. I'm processing something that was said to me yesterday, a message actually, that I believe the Lord wants me to hear. But, in that journey of processing, I've been stuck on this thought all day.
It's interesting to me how some words take on a life of their own and seem to have power just in the utterance. "Cancer", for instance, is one of those words. That's the one that keeps reverberating in my mind as I chew on these thoughts. In many cases, people have difficulty even saying it, relegating it to "The 'C' word" so as to not have to name the terrible thing.
The lady who shared with me last night actually battled cancer. She was given a 24% chance of living as the disease ravaged her body. To someone who has faced those odds, I can imagine that "the 'C' word carries a great deal of weight.
I think too often we are careless with our words. I know I have been guilty of that. But, I wonder what it would be like if we really measured our words before we used them. Have you ever called someone a name? Have you ever been labeled? Or, have you done the same to someone else? I know that I have and it grieves me. There are labels and names people have given me that have left very deep wounds. I shudder to think what wounds I've left on people.
Words have power. They have power to bless. They have power to curse. They can deeply wound people, but they can speak healing too.
So, I'm processing this word from the Lord to see what He would have me learn. He's already revealed much of it and much of its purpose. I'm excited to see where He leads.
It's interesting to me how some words take on a life of their own and seem to have power just in the utterance. "Cancer", for instance, is one of those words. That's the one that keeps reverberating in my mind as I chew on these thoughts. In many cases, people have difficulty even saying it, relegating it to "The 'C' word" so as to not have to name the terrible thing.
The lady who shared with me last night actually battled cancer. She was given a 24% chance of living as the disease ravaged her body. To someone who has faced those odds, I can imagine that "the 'C' word carries a great deal of weight.
I think too often we are careless with our words. I know I have been guilty of that. But, I wonder what it would be like if we really measured our words before we used them. Have you ever called someone a name? Have you ever been labeled? Or, have you done the same to someone else? I know that I have and it grieves me. There are labels and names people have given me that have left very deep wounds. I shudder to think what wounds I've left on people.
Words have power. They have power to bless. They have power to curse. They can deeply wound people, but they can speak healing too.
So, I'm processing this word from the Lord to see what He would have me learn. He's already revealed much of it and much of its purpose. I'm excited to see where He leads.
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