Daily Devotional – Wednesday, May 11, 2022
Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.
Colossians 4:6 (ESV)
Before the COVID-19 pandemic that plagued the world from late 2020, not many people had heard of or regularly used the term ‘sanitize’. Medical experts emphasized constant handwashing, wearing of masks and the use of sanitizers as protective measures.
A prominent clergyman revived these memories when he told a group of mourners to sanitize their mouths. His main target was politicians who have a penchant for unleashing invectives on their opponents, particularly in the glare of cameras.
Let Your Speech Always Be Gracious
he foul speech pandemic, however, has not infected politicians alone. If social media is anything to go by, the rot is entrenched in society. It is reflected in the content of radio talk shows, popular music and everyday conversations among adults and youth alike.
Do Christians need to sanitize their mouths, too? Yes, we must filter what proceeds from our mouths. In the epistle to the Colossians, Paul wrote:
“Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.” (Colossians 4:6).
Sanitize Your Mouth
In Paul’s analogy, salt played the same role as sanitizers. It killed harmful germs. In a similar manner, our words must minister grace and godliness to those who listen to us. If we adhere to this counsel, we will avoid gossip, slander, invectives and vulgarities.
If we sanitize our mouths, we will know when, how and what to speak to specific people. Our speech will bless others and glorify God.
Prayer
Lord Jesus, please reveal to me what I need to do that my speech may be gracious and wholesome.
