words are weighty.

Let’s address flakiness. What I mean by that is the tendency to say one thing and do another. Yeah girl, we’re going there.

If this is the case for you, there is something out of alignment in your character.

“Putting confidence in an unreliable person in times of trouble is like chewing with a broken tooth or walking on a lame foot.”

‭- ‭Proverbs‬ ‭25:19‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I want you to do a quick evaluation of yourself, are you unreliable, or are you faithful? I think that the answer to that question is connected to our words. Proverbs 18:21 says “The power of life and death is in the tongue, those who love it will eat its fruit.”

Your words carry weight, they matter. They can bring life or destruction. If you say you’re going to do something, but you don’t do it, you are lying. It’s really that black and white. Jesus said this in Matthew 5:37 “Let what you say be simply 'Yes' or 'No'; anything more than this comes from evil.” (ESV‬) Can I call us higher? Can we match our words with our actions?

Psalm 15 gives a list of qualities of those who ascend the hill of the Lord and one of those things is honoring your word to your own hurt. This means that if you make a commitment with your tongue, you’re going to honor it even when it’s inconvenient or costly. This isn’t meant to scare or shame you, it’s meant to illuminate the power that your words carry. If you struggle with this, practically you can get a calendar or planner to help you keep track of things. And not be afraid to tell people no.

Don’t let fear of man rule you, it’s a snare (Proverbs 29:25). I’d rather have an honest no than a yes I can’t count on.

James 1:19 encouraged us to “be slow to speak, quick to listen, and slow to become angry, for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” Another practical thing you can do it talk less. Think before you speak and really determine if you’re able to follow through with the commitments you’re agreeing to. For example, if someone invites you to an event instead of frantically replying yes in a moment, you can give a proper, sincere response after you have calculated if you are able to attend.

People who honor their word are trustworthy, ones we can count on. Let’s be women who only say what we mean and honor the Lord and the people around us with our words.

Love you, Andrea Claire