“Small minds talk about people…”
“At daybreak Thursday, heavy gunfire reverberated in central Cairo as the two sides continued to face off at the square...”
“Why do you prophesy, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord...’”
“Middling minds talk about events...”
"No idea holds greater sway in the mind of educated Americans than the belief that it is possible to democratize governments, anytime, anywhere, under any circumstances."
“When can I expect my payment?”
“We have a meeting on the 23rd…”
“Great minds talk about ideas, and propose solutions…”
“Is that what you call a getaway, tell me what you got away with, because I’ve seen more spine in jellyfish, I’ve seen more guts in eleven-year-old kids…”
“Would 2:00pm work okay for you on Thursday?”
“Christians seem to feel more allegiance to the positions of the political left or the right than we feel to God’s people…”
“Today I’m only talking about recruiting…”
“Do you know how to run hydrology?”
“What do you think about seeding those structures?”
“So these two artists are outside drawing, and one of them leans over to the other and asks, ‘Will you marry me?’”
“Warning: This product can cause mouth cancer…”
“That should be sent to your office by February 11th or 14th…”
“...for out of the abundance of the heart, his mouth speaks.”
I probably don’t listen well enough. Strike that, I probably don’t listen well enough. I know I don’t listen well enough! How impossible would it be for one to say nothing and only listen to what’s being said around them, do what’s being asked of them? And for how long – a minute, an hour, a day, a week? And even if one wanted to, what sort of event could break the mental fortitude necessary to thwart such an effort? And really, what would be the point after all?
On June 14, 2007, Associated Newspapers Ltd, a United Kingdom consumer media company published an article by Gwyneth Rees on its Daily Mail site. The article was about 13-year old Ben Grocock who, at the age of 3, was so terrified about the news that he would need a tonsil operation; he insisted he would never speak again. And, for ten years he did just that...well, mostly.
For four years after his operation, Ben would only speak to his brother, and even then only when the two were alone. To communicate with everyone else he would use written notes and hand signals. In 2003, a bike accident shocked him into speaking briefly to his mother saying, “Ouch, that hurt!” He was diagnosed with selective mutism, a rare anxiety disorder which leaves children terrified of speaking in certain situations.
Then, in 2007, a local fire brigade ran a confidence course where Ben started talking properly for the first time. He even addressed the audience at the graduation ceremony for the course, managing a hesitant “Thank you.”
What Ben managed to do in response to what his parents thought was an empty threat is stunning.
The human body has a lot of parts – about fifteen different systems with at least five major parts to each; some more, some less, and all with more parts that make up the parts that make up the parts that make up the parts...you get the point.
But which parts are the most important? I submit to you the ears and the tongue.
By most accounts, the ears and the tongue are part of two different systems –the ears, part of the external sensory system and the tongue, part of the digestive system. And few other organs are treated with such paramount, and yet subliminal, importance as the ears and the tongue. Paramount, because since the invention of rhetoric, the ears and the tongue have been the greatest purporters. Subliminal, because we don’t often understand the power of these body parts.
My favorite band, Brand New, in their song “Play Crack the Sky,” sing the following lyrics:
“Your tongue is a rudder.
It steers the whole ship,
Sends your words past your lips
Or keeps them safe behind your teeth.
But the wrong words will strand you.
Come off course while you sleep.
Sweep your boat out to sea
Or dashed to bits on the reef.”
It steers the whole ship,
Sends your words past your lips
Or keeps them safe behind your teeth.
But the wrong words will strand you.
Come off course while you sleep.
Sweep your boat out to sea
Or dashed to bits on the reef.”
Says the Bible:
“But no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.” (James 3:8, ESV)
“Whoever keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps himself out of trouble.” (Proverbs 21:23, ESV)
“Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits.” (Proverbs 18:21, ESV)
“I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” (Matthew 12:36-37, ESV)
“There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.” (Proverbs 12:18, ESV)
“If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person's religion is worthless.” (James 1:26, ESV)
“Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.” (Ephesians 4:29, ESV)
“A Psalm of David. I said, “I will guard my ways, that I may not sin with my tongue; I will guard my mouth with a muzzle, so long as the wicked are in my presence.” (Psalm 39:1, ESV)
“For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12, ESV)
“A gentle tongue is a tree of life, but perverseness in it breaks the spirit.” (Proverbs 15:4, ESV)
“There are six things that the Lord hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers.” (Proverbs 6:16-19, ESV)
So it turns out, a lot of talking about talking has taken place over time in a lot of different places. But it’s just communication – talking and listening – why so many strong words about words?
The quotes at the beginning are things I have read or heard said, sung or reported over the past week. And now they’re things you’ve read; along with the rest of the content before you.
The point here is not that we should stop talking, swear a vow of silence, cut out our tongues or burn our books. The point here is that many of us, me personally, fail to actually hear what is being said. The difference between hearing and listening is the difference between street noise and beautiful music (though the two sometimes come together ala DJ, Kid Koala – there’s a musical experience!).
I often find myself saying things that, when I think back on them later, don’t really amount to anything. In other words, I say a lot without ever saying anything. And this behavior directly impacts how I listen. It is often difficult for me to hear someone else over myself, let alone listen to what it is they’re saying. This is manifest at work, in casual (and serious) conversation with others, introspectively in listening to my heart or mind and toward God in prayer. I go on and on about my business, what’s happened to me, what’s important to ME, AND IT GETS LOUDER AND LOUDER UNTIL I HAVE TO SCREAM OVER MYSELF, “STOP!”
Sound familiar?
I have got to start listening. We have got to start listening.
“Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many. Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body.” (1 Corinthians 12:12-20, NIV)
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