Can't Take It Back

Give heed to me, O Lord, and listen to what my adversaries say. -- Jeremiah 18:19

Activity: Have each person write down something they wish they hadn't said with a permanent ink pen. Then try to erase it.

This makes me think of a line from (I *think*) Amy Tan's The Joy Luck Club, where one of the daughters compares her relationship with her mother to a boiling pot that you see is about to spill over, and while you can stop it, you're also curious to see what happens--so you let it go. Particularly in my adolescence, I had a tendency to do this with my own parents. While I can't recall (read: have probably blocked out) specific instances where I've said something I regret, I know that they hurt because (regardless of what my dad will admit) he's said some pretty hurtful things to me as well that I will never forget and will always hurt to remember. This is another lesson I learned again recently. So I cannot reiterate enough how important it is to think before you speak; in spite of the phrase, words tend to hurt more than the sticks and stones.

"Let each thing that I say bear the likeness of perfection / Let my words tell the story of His everlasting love." -- John Angotti, "Everlasting Love"

Prayer: God, help us to say the things that people really need to hear, the things that will really help them.
 
~The Original Fong~
**You wish you could pull off being me**

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