OCTOBER  7

WATCH YOUR WORDS

MATTHEW 12:31-37


“But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.” (Matt. 12:36)

My wife and I were trying to go to sleep in a Denver hotel when a couple checked in to the room next to us. The walls were so thin, you could have heard them talking in sign language! The wife came in the door griping and calling her husband every name you could imagine. He seldom said anything. She wouldn’t let him. This went on for nearly an hour and a half until they fell asleep.When they woke up in the morning, she picked up where she left off. The first words out of her mouth were poison. This continued until the man just left the room.

I couldn’t restrain myself. I knocked on the door and the woman came to answer. I told her I didn’t mean to listen, but I couldn’t help it. We heard every word she’d said. I told her I’d been praying for her and just wanted her to know that Jesus loved her and could take her anger away. She started crying and told me that she was already a Christian. She didn’t know why she was acting that way. She said she needed help.

I had to go because I was appearing on a Denver television station, but I told her to watch the show, and I’d share with her how to overcome strife. On the air, I told her story without using her name and explained how to stop the hatred. I never heard from her, but I’ve often wondered what happened. One thing’s for sure: That woman learned that her words weren’t as private as she thought!

Imagine on judgment day when every idle word will have to be accounted for. It’s to our advantage to watch our words now, knowing that someday, they will all be made public. Since we’ll have to eat our words, we might as well make them sweet. (AW)