Words Matter...

Here’s a funny, yet not funny story in the Bible about making fun of others. The moral to the story: never make fun of a prophet of God. In this case, God silenced these mockers with two bears. Your words matter, and they are a reflection of what’s in your heart. And regardless of what people say, the old “sticks and stones” rhyme isn’t true. Words do hurt, they can destroy people. Words spoken during childhood, have the ability to continue affecting people throughout their lifetime. Including the ones that come out of the mouths of the name callers. Choose your words wisely.

23 Elisha left Jericho and went up to Bethel. As he was walking along the road, a group of boys from the town began mocking and making fun of him. “Go away, baldy!” they chanted. “Go away, baldy!” 24 Elisha turned around and looked at them, and he cursed them in the name of the Lord. Then two bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of them. 25 From there Elisha went to Mount Carmel and finally returned to Samaria. 2 Kings 2:23-25

6 Fools’ words get them into constant quarrels;they are asking for a beating. 7 The mouths of fools are their ruin;they trap themselves with their lips. Proverbs 18:6-7