Ephesians 4:29
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.

What kind of words do you speak?

Corrupt communication? What is meant by that?  Here are a few examples:

• Taking the name of the Lord in vain
• Cursing
• Referencing sex and body parts in vulgar ways
• Saying things designed to demean and torment
• Telling or laughing at jokes that are hurtful/derogatory
• Racial slurs
• Feeding into stereotypes

What motivates you to talk the way you do? Is it the Bible and being in the presence of God?

Proverbs 4:20-23 My son, attend to my words; consent and submit to my sayings. 21 Let them not depart from your sight; keep them in the center of your heart. 22 For they are life to those who find them, healing and health to all their flesh. 23 Keep and guard your heart with all vigilance and above all that you guard, for out of it flow the springs of life. (Amplified Bible Classic)

Or is your speech motivated by the television shows you watch, the company you keep, the music you listen to?

Psalm 1:1-2 Blessed (happy, fortunate, prosperous, and enviable) is the man who walks and lives not in the counsel of the ungodly [following their advice, their plans and purposes], nor stands [submissive and inactive] in the path where sinners walk, nor sits down [to relax and rest] where the scornful [and the mockers] gather. 2 But his delight and desire are in the law of the Lord, and on His law (the precepts, the instructions, the teachings of God) he habitually meditates (ponders and studies) by day and by night. (Amplified Bible Classic)

Do you find your way of speaking changes based on who you are around? Are certain words acceptable in some circles and not in others? Do funny jokes become less funny depending on who is telling them and who is around when they are told? If you evaluate what you watch, who you spend time with, what you listen to, you may also find there is a great deal of corrupt communication. If you find your conversation lines up with anything other than the word; more often than not, you may also find some deeper areas for concern in your life. If you are going to be successful in this warfare and train your spirit, you have to make some changes. 

Proverbs 4:24-27 Put away from you false and dishonest speech, and willful and contrary talk put far from you. 25 Let your eyes look right on [with fixed purpose], and let your gaze be straight before you. 26 Consider well the path of your feet, and let all your ways be established and ordered aright. 27 Turn not aside to the right hand or to the left; remove your foot from evil. (Amplified Bible Classic)

God is calling you to speak words that bring life and build up, not judge, kill, and teardown. If you want God’s kind of life, you have to be in His presence daily. Because of the time spent there, you will soon stop engaging in conversations that are not edifying. Stop living a life where the Bible challenges your lifestyle. Let the word of God and the power of His Spirit change you. 

Please agree with me as I pray:

Father, God, I continue to be amazed at what Bible study does. It is convicting and if I submit; it is also transforming. I am learning to monitor what I watch, what I listen to and what I say. I repent for thinking, if I don’t curse, I’m good. But in the study today, You are showing me that monitoring me is not enough. It is not just the words that I speak, but the things that I allow in the entryways to my heart that I must be mindful of. When I don’t guard my eye gate and my ear gate, I can say things that are not edifying without thinking because those words are in my subconscious. I have to make sure my best friends are not those who don’t regard your word. I have to make sure I don’t laugh at jokes that are not pleasing to You. When I am responding in a way that does not demonstrate a heart of love; I will stop at the moment and listen to the Holy Spirit when He pricks me, and I will repent. So, I ask You now to forgive me. Please continue to make me aware when I veer off the path that gives You glory, whether in my conversation or ones that I am party to. I know the result of moving away from certain conversations or not participating will cause me to be left out or thought differently of. To be honest, I know I will have some emotional backlash to deal with, but I choose You. Continue to encourage me Father, so I don’t give in. Continue to remind me, it is You and You only I want to please…