Watching What We Say

How many of us are willing to answer this question honestly, 'Do you watch what you say or do you just open your mouth and words come spewing out?'

Wait a minute, no pushing allowed, I will take my honest position in the front of the line, I am known for being brutally honest and I mean blunt and to the point, no need to mollycoddle someone, no reason to be nice first and gently approach someone, no, I am the steam roller barrelling down the hill without brakes. So, please, I will take my place at the head of the line.

Can I be kinder? Probably. Can I find another way to say something? Most definitely, I mean, DUH! I do have a Masters degree, which consisted of learning to write business letters which meant having more than one instructor tell me to rewrite a letter because you just can't go in for the kill first, you have to butter them up, then be blunt and then rebutter them. Boy, it sure seems like a lot of work and a lot of high stepping to me.

But, I am revisiting a book I once read entitled: 'BECOMING A WOMAN WHO PLEASES GOD.'
If that title offends you, stop reading and find another blog, I am not here to make my readers happy, I am here to be who I am with a few twists and turns along the way.

This book is a self declared 'Guide to Developing Your Biblical Potential.' It is written by Dr. Pat Ennis and Dr. Lisa Tatlock who are faculty members of The Masters College in Santa Clarita, California and yes, you can obtain a degree in this area under Home Economics. Oh, how I wish I had been given this book before I got married or before I got a Masters in Human Resources which has resulted in a high tuition bill and not one job offer.

Sorry, I am off point a bit. In the beginning of the book, there are a list of ten principles and principle number nine is (you guessed it), the one on thinking before you speak or what we all learned from our parents, 'if you can't say something nice about someone, keep your yap shut!'

They have a profound way of making you think before speaking and yes, today, that has included me. If you follow the following rules before you talk out loud, well, you may find as I did today, you just don't have much to say.

'1- Is it kind?
2- Is it necessary?
3- Is it true? (Just because it is, doesn't mean you have to say it)**my own opinion.
4- Is it gossip?
5- Am I defending my own opinion rather than listening to the individual?'

Powerful questions that virutally kept my office quiet all day after I posted on a wall to remind myself to think about what I am going to say first.

The above quote was copied from the book: 'BECOMING A WOMAN WHO PLEASES GOD,'
Ennis, Pat & Tatlock, Lisa. 2003. Moody Publishers. Chicago, Illinois.

So, I guess what I am saying here, is that all of us including myself truly need to remember to think before we speak up and really to look at the other person we are dealing with. Just because I am brutally honest, does not mean the receiver of my words isn't going to feel like I just punched him/her in he gut and knocked the wind out of them.

If you are a woman who loves God and wants to improve each day for your family, I highly suggest you find a copy of this book and make it real to your heart. Or better yet, take the course from the writers if you can afford to do so, it can only make you a better woman.