How great is it when someone says the right thing at the right moment? God has given us the ability to bless, encourage, praise, sing & worship with our words. But how often does our words get us into trouble? If you're anything like me, struggling with an "unbridled tongue" for most of my life, then there's no end to the trouble one can create with a few simple words.

I know that my words have done severe damage to relationships in my life. But I am grateful for God's Holy Spirit - it has brought about so much good in my life, and not just with my words. God can give us the wisdom that we need to control our tongues & learn to speak words that reflect the love of Jesus, and what His word says.

You have the ability to make or break a person's day. Proverbs 18:21 says "The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit." One thing that we need to do is watch how we talk about ourselves. Things like "I can't do anything right", "nothing ever works out for me" and "nobody love mes" are things that are not conducive with God's love & word. Instead of reinforcing our insecurities, we need to say the same thing that God says about us in His word. We are blessed, and every morning, when we get up, we should convey this in prayer.

"give thanks and praise his name" - Psalm 100:4[c] says it all. Learn to tell people how thankful you are for what they do for you... And thank God for everything - your family, your health, your home... Take a few minutes every day to offer up your gratitude to Him. Thank Him for calling you out of this world, for changing you (because we are not the same person we were the day we got baptized][and that is definitely worthy of offering thanks!]. He has so much going on in the background while we feel like we're waiting for the next breakthrough - we need to be thankful! How many of us can say that there are people in our actual family that are disciples as well? How much would we like that to happen? Most of us may never experience that, and yet I rarely ever thank God for my bio- & spiritual brother!

Encouraging others is easy for me (as is tearing them down, so history tells me). But similar to me making a pact with God to stop tearing people down, we need to do the same in building each other up. Regardless of what we're good\bad at, we need to pray to God to show us who (and how) to encourage. Isaiah 50:4 says "The Sovereign Lord has given me a well-instructed tongue, to know the word that sustains the weary. He wakens me morning by morning, wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed." We have a general idea on whose going to be in our day today - ask God to put something on your heart, to say to them that will build them up.

The bible says that we are to worship in truth & spirit. But if we're waiting for God's next "gift", we need to be committed to the truth. And that may mean sacrifice, at times. Sometimes we may lose a friend, or a "reputation". Know that God's Plan may include change that may seem difficult at the moment... but He has the best in line for us.

But one of the best things that we can do to encourage is simply be quiet. Proverbs 10:19 says "Sin is not ended by multiplying words, but the prudent hold their tongues." We have two eyes, two ears, two nostrils, but only one mouth.

We need to concentrate on God's goodness & encourage others along the way. And in doing so, we will experience more joy.