Alabaster Box

In my ever-increasing fascination and desperate need for renewed speech, I found Nancy Leigh Demoss’ advice on the popular verse from Proverbs 31, “She opens her mouth with wisdom, and on her tongue is the law of kindness,” (31:26) to be sensible and supportive.

Here’s a woman, “She opens her mouth.” It’s a sense that she does this deliberately. She opens her mouth when she has something to say that needs to be said. She’s a woman who speaks words that are measured. They’re thought through before she says them. Her mouth isn’t always open.

Now if we’re going to be women who speak with wisdom and kindness, that means we have to have a wise, kind heart because our words reflect our hearts. You don’t just wake up one morning and have a wise, kind heart. That has to be cultivated. It has to be tended. It has to be developed.

This is a discipline that I want to succeed in. For improvements to be made, I must focus on the area that produces my words – which is my heart.

… if I want my words to be different, I need to say, “Lord, I need a different heart. I need You to change my heart.” That may require repentance. It may mean acknowledging first to the Lord and then to your husband, to your children, “I’ve not had words that are wise and kind, and it’s been a reflection of a heart that’s angry or impatient. Please forgive me,” and allowing the Lord to change you.

He can, and He will give you that kind of heart. It doesn’t come overnight, but as we allow Him to mold us and shape us and change our hearts, then what comes out of our mouths will reflect the repentant, kind, wise heart that God has put in us.

Similar Posts:

• Words from the Heart
• On this Good Friday
• Giver of Wisdom
• My Life is an Offering

Filed under: Femininity, Reflections, Words on November 10th, 2008