Gift of the Tongue

We are studying the book of Genesis this year in my Community Bible Study group. So far, I have really enjoyed this study, and I am already anticipating getting to know the women in my core group even better. We have only completed our in-depth study of the first three chapters of Genesis, but one of the items that has really impacted me is the power and majesty of our Creator!

One of the most powerful aspects for me is how God literally spoke our entire universe into being. At the beginning of Genesis, the six days of creation begin by stating, "And God said..." I had never before thought of the powerfulness of this statement. God spoke everything into creation - isn't that amazing?

But the other item that has really resonated with me are the attributes that God has given to each of us. Obviously, I knew that God had formed each of us "in His own image." So, I knew about our physical similarities with God. However, I had never spent a lot of time considering the attributes that God had given us. The biggest attribute that has been on my mind has been the power of our tongue. Just as God created everything with His words, He has also given us the power of the tongue. Although other animals have tongues, none has the ability to communicate like we do.

That fact has definitely given me reason to ponder our gift of the tongue. God has also given us the ability to create and/or destroy with our spoken words. My prayer over the past two weeks has been for God to increase my awareness of my words. I really want to be known for my ability to encourage others and to build others up. I know how quickly I tend to open my mouth and speak (especially during those especially long silences when things tend to get uncomfortable). And usually, I end up saying something that I regret.

May we each remember the power of our words and commit to using them to encourage others. If God used His words to create our universe, can I not honor Him with the words that I use?