Sometimes I say the wrong thing. Maybe it’s not appropriate for the situation, not diplomatic enough, or it just plain comes out…..wrong. Anyway, I can definitely say that sometimes I have a big mouth and my foot fits right in there regardless of what kind of shoes I might be wearing that day. (And sometimes they stink)
But more of the time, I don’t say enough. I don’t take the opportunity to proclaim Jesus and His grace, His love, His understanding ~ boldly and with great joy. I let fear hold me back. Or selfishness, or worry, or concern about what others might think if I say something the wrong way or offend them.
I have found in life, dear friends ~ I have found that I usually regret the not saying more than the times I have said something the wrong way. I can apologize with great sincerity when I say the wrong thing. But a missed opportunity? Well, those are the times – those pockets of silence that I KNOW should have been filled – that I regret.
Do I wish to live with that? Not any more.
I pray for the Holy Spirit to nudge me (and pound me, even) when I am not sure what to say, but I know that I am supposed to open my mouth. I pray for the words – His words – to flow out freely. I pray for the obedience to stop over-thinking things and just let those words come out….the words that come straight from the heart and the Spirit of the Lord. And I pray for the wisdom to know the difference ~ the difference between my own well-intentioned words and those that He would wish for me to say.
Our words matter, friends. And not just how we say things, but all the things that we do not say.
Open your mouths and let your words be things that reflect all that Jesus Christ is.
Grace, Love, Salvation. So very much more.
It’s the good news that we simply cannot keep to ourselves.
We may be in chains in many other ways, but we can still speak powerfully for Christ Jesus. Because He lives.
And He has good news for us to share.
And for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak. Ephesians 6:19-20
Eyes Wide Open 
Amen, Anne! May He fill us each so full of His hope, that we overflow in hope, abounding in grace, and replicating light and life with our words so that they look, sound and feel like His.
Bless you!
Dawn