Words.

2 Sundays ago was Easter.  My pastor preached a message using Luke 24:5.  This verse says, "In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, 'Why do you look for the living among the dead?'" (Very appropriate for Easter.)  In this verse, the angel of the Lord is asking these women why they are looking for Jesus (who was alive) in a tomb (where the dead lay).

It got me thinking...how often do I do that:  Look for the living among the dead...to look for encouragement, hope, peace or comfort among people who are dead inside.

It's so easy for me (or any of us for that matter) to dwell on the negative, the bad stuff, to sensationalize things, to think of all the what-could-have-beens.  We get in our little groups and (let's just call it what it is) gossip about the latest dirt.  How does this help anything?  When we do that, are we really looking for anwers, comfort, or peace?  Or are we speaking death?  Proverbs 18:21 says, "The tongue has the power of life and death."  Are we seeking the living (words that bring life) among the dead (people whose words bring death)?

PLEASE don't get me wrong.  I'm NOT saying that every time a group of people get together and talk about issues that it's gossip.  I understand that many conversations about difficult events/topics are based on people seeking life-giving words; words of encouragement, words of affirmation, words of peace, and can help bring closure.  These kinds of conversations are what true friends use to encourage and help one another.

My prayer is that when difficult circumstances arise, that I would not "seek the living among the dead"- that I would not look for encouragement where I know I will find unGodly talk - and that my words would be a source of life. 

I have to constantly re-evaluate myself so that when difficult times arise and I am approached about it, I must be deliberate in speaking words of life. Otherwise, my mouth is a tomb that ensnares all who would speak with me.

God help us all.