You know when someone walks into a room and even before they open their mouths, everyone’s going ‘oh no…’ They’re known as someone who never has a good word to say about anyone, or anything. With a couple of well-chosen words, they can drain the energy and joy from a room. So their words have gone before them. It’s kind of like someone who’s used half a can of deodorant on themselves that morning - they’ve made a personal atmosphere that goes before them. People feel the room change when they enter. Okay. Now the opposite. Have you ever been around someone and you just want to hang on their every word? When they speak you can tell their whole attention is on you. They mention things they know you’re interested in, or do. In lots of small ways their words are focused on others, not themselves. The atmosphere they’ve made with their words is different, so when they come into a room, you can feel the mood lighten. Even before they speak. Your words can make an atmosphere that goes before you. When you’re known for it, when people start changing their words when they’re around you too, your atmosphere has spread.

What now?
The first step to changing your words is knowing when to hold your tongue. Proverbs 17 has some pointers on when to shut up. (We’re thinking verses 1, 9, 14, 19, 20, and especially 27 and 28.) Get familiar with them. Read over them today in spare minutes. Then tomorrow we’ll look at how to replace those dead words with words that bring life.