The Word that Goes to Work

The Work that Goes to Work
James 1.19-27

Human wisdom regularly produces proverbs. ‘A stitch in time saves nine.’ ‘A rolling stone gathers no moss.’ And so on. One of the proverbs I learned very early in life went like this: ‘Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.’ I think we boys at school used to chant it to one another as a response to a silly playground insult.

But of course that proverb is very misleading. You can recover from a broken leg or arm. But if someone smears your good name – if someone tells lies about you, and other people believe them – it may be much, much harder. You may never get the job you want. People may never quite trust you. Friends, even family, may turn away. Words can be terrible things. They can leave lasting wounds...

Taken from Early Christian Letters For Everyone by Tom Wright