And David said longingly, “Oh that someone would give me water to drink from the well of Bethlehem that is by the gate!” 1 Chronicles 11:17
One of my love languages is quality time spent in recreational activities. For instance, I feel love from my wife when she goes hiking with me. Several times, my wife has pointed out that she has put significant effort into my recreational activities (like hiking), while I’ve made little effort to participate in hers – hitting all the second-hand thrift stores in town. This is simply not my idea of fun. So, when she points out that I don’t put any effort into her recreational activities, I think I’m being funny when I say something like this – But my recreational activities are actually fun. It’s a flippant joke that I’ve made several times and even though I think it’s hilarious, it’s not funny to her. To her, it says – I’m not willing to do something I don’t want to do to show you the love that you’ve shown me. Those words which I say in jest and which I say I don’t really mean, are actually quite hurtful to her.
Words matter. Even if we think we don’t mean them. This is the lesson of today’s passage. In the story, King David flippantly expressed his desire for a drink of water from a specific well that was behind enemy lines. His men heard him say this and so, three of them risked life and limb to get him some of that water. Once they brought it to him though, David realized the impact of his offhand words. He hadn’t really meant it, but his men took him quite seriously.
Words matter. James, brother of Jesus, pointed out that though we may see our words as insignificant, they’re like a small spark that can set an entire forest ablaze (James 3:5-6). Many of us have gotten ourselves in way over our heads, causing hurt we never intended, simply because of a few careless words. Nowhere is this truer than in our homes, where we’re the most thoughtless with our speech. Those we love most, deserve our best, but often, they instead get the careless words that fall out of our mouths after a long day at work. So, if we desire to show those we love most, that we really do love them, we must control our tongues, learning to be careful with our speech. Words matter.