A word that brings people together
April 16, 2012 (Monday)
Every now and then someone will greet me with, “What’s the good word?” I usually try to come up with a quaint answer of some kind. It can be most anything, because the greeter didn’t really want to know “the good word.” He was just saying “Hello.”
I would like to ask, “What’s the good word?” Proverbs 16:28 tells us, “A perverse person stirs up conflict, and a gossip separates close friends” (NIV). So when we ask for a good word, we definitely are not asking for an answer that stirs up trouble between people. No gossip, please. No tale-bearing. No slander. No hearsay. Just a good word, preferable one that builds up someone’s reputation instead of tearing it down.
What’s the good word? It’s the word that speaks good of others, even if the speaker knows something bad. We don’t have to tell all we know, even if we believe it’s true.
What’s the good word? It’s the word that spreads peace. It’s not the word that spreads trouble. Some folks need to write at the top of their “to do” list each day: “Don’t be a trouble-maker.” Jesus said, “blessed are the “peacemakers,” not “blessed are the troublemakers.”
What’s the good word? It’s the word that brings people together. It’s not a word that might separate friends. Every once in a while I have a friendly meeting with someone, but the next time we meet, the person is not as friendly. A third party has been talking with my friend. And the word was not good.
Let us remember that the New Testament declares in no uncertain terms that Jesus brings people together. He wants us to share “good words.”