After my prayer and meditation I began writing in my journal about a family whose father’s health is declining rapidly, and the situation did not appear hopeful. I wrote, “This is a hard time.” Then I was struck almost immediately by the word “hard,” and I thought how often we label something bad, or look at painful images. “It’s a bad day; This is a bad report; I got up on the wrong side of the bed; I’m having a bad hair day.” Or we watch shows like, “Breaking Bad, Desperate Housewives (I know it’s been cancelled), Basketball Wives, Revenge, Scandal, Hell’s kitchen, I Hate My Teenage Daughter”. Our language is sprinkled with words that pull us down, and not lift us up. We say, “This is horrible!!” with exaggerated gestures and raised voices. It is no wonder our attitudes and behaviors reflect the current culture. We are like that double minded man who is unstable in all his ways, because he is being tossed around by everything around him.
I’m not saying we should not define tragedies. I am saying our daily language needs some refinement. Philippians 4:8-9 asks us to meditate on the things which are of good report, and the God of peace will be with you. Peace of mind will evade us, if we constantly bombard our minds and speak language that does not reflect the God of peace.
I challenge you to avoid using those words that do not reflect the God of peace, and only use words that lift up the name and character of our Lord Jesus Christ for one day. Let’s go for “Breaking Good, instead of Breaking Bad.”
Loving God with Excellence 