Thursday, May 20, 2010

The elevated purpose of speech

We talk a lot.  It is considered good to talk; anti-social not to talk.  People are talking to us or at us all day long.  The television and radio are talking.  People on cellphones are talking.  Saint Paul warns against talking that is "corrupt" and exhorts us to edify:
"Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers." (Ephesians 4:29)
My guess is that we oftentimes violate this very good advice by simply trying to be socially acceptable, to fit in, to not hurt the other's feelings.  There are those rare few, however, who can speak with edification in mind - and do so with complete sincerity and in a way that "lifts" the conversation.  Are you one of those?

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