“As a jewel of gold in a swine's snout, so is a fair woman which is without discretion.” Proverbs 11:22

 

The time for thinking is BEFORE speaking!

 

Wow! That’s quite a Proverb. Think about it… a gold ring decorating the nose of a pig, A PIG – that’s what Solomon uses as a comparison? Pretty harsh, and yet…

A quote that once was very familiar originated from a Shakespearean play: “Discretion is the better part of valor.” Although in the play it referred more to caution and courage, it has, over time, come to mean that to be disciplined and discreet in speech is to be commended. When referring to Christian speech, it is not only commendable, but essential! 

In our world, speech has become much more than verbal. I’ve noticed that blocking, defriending and “hiding” certain people’s posts have become a normal occurrence in my day. For some reason, the feeling of detachment and anonymity that comes with a “keyboard” has given birth to an epidemic of indiscretion.

Here’s a list of synonyms from the Meriam-Webster Dictionary for the word indiscreet: brash, graceless, ill-advised, imprudent, inadvisable, indelicate, injudicious, tactless, undiplomatic and unwise. I know that list helps me see the reasoning behind Solomon’s proverb. Truly this type of “speech” negates the natural beauty of a person, and I’m not just referring to physical beauty.

In the book of James, we are asked the question “Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring?” This question is presented as a reflection on our speech. The answer is, of course, NO. Christian’s words whether spoken, typed, or swyped should be at the very least discreet.

Unfortunately, it’s easy to self-justify when it comes to “speaking.” We can convince ourselves that what we are about to share is okay, because ________, and we fill in the blank with all sorts of reasons. Sadly, it eventually becomes so common for us, that we don’t even have to go through the self-justifying process any more. 

When deciding whether or not we should “say” something, a great Scripture to use as a gauge is Ephesians chapter 4, verse 29: “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.” 

Here’s a challenge: If you have a Facebook account, go check out some of your posts or responses and ask some basic questions: Is this humorous at someone’s expense; is this critical of someone; is the language borderline inappropriate. Facebook isn’t the only venue where indiscretion abounds. The potential is there in every avenue of communication. 

Whether we are posting, tweeting, emailing, texting, snail-mailing or even speaking to someone on the phone, let’s remember that list of synonyms from the Meriam-Webster Dictionary and ask ourselves the question “should I say that?”