The Color of My Words

I always feel close to my late wife whenever I go grocery shopping.  I’m pretty sure that it is because of all the time we spent in grocery stores together over the years.  When the kids got old enough to stay home alone, going to Food Maxx or Raley’s became one of those opportunities where we could spend precious time alone with each other…

And my shopping excursion to my local Kroger’s yesterday was no different!  From the very first plastic bag I pulled to place my zucchini in, until I wheeled the cart away from the self-check area, my mind was awash with memories of us walking, talking and laughing our way through the hollowed aisles of canned, bagged and boxed food items.

But the real moment that brought happy tears to my eyes was when I was pushing my loaded cart to my car in the parking lot.  As I proceeded down the lane between the parked cars, I couldn’t help but smile when I passed two older ladies walking toward the entrance of the store.  They were deep in conversation and didn’t notice me as they walked by.  But what caught my eye and caused me to stop and turn around after I had passed them, was the white-haired (obviously older of the two) gal wearing a bright purple jogging suit and new athletic shoes.

The laughter that came up from deep inside of me and brought a rush of joy-filled tears to my eyes was the immediate thought that my Piper, if alive and in her seventies today, would definitely be the one wearing the bright colored jogging suit… although I am pretty certain that her COLOR of choice would have been red!  She used to sport jogging suits when they were popular back in the nineties and had numerous sets including a bright blue and a bright red one.

She tended to enjoy wearing brightly COLORED clothes that made her skin tone pop with vibrancy.  The bright COLORS also displayed the full effect of her personality and outwardly encouraging heart.

And that little journey down the sweet halls of her memories stirred up inside of me yesterday, sort of encapsulated a thought that I had been thinking about and investigating for the last week or so… with that thought being,

‘Do Our Words Have Color?’

Do our words represent the differing spectrum of COLOR perception?  A quick look at some prevalent scientific discussions on the subject quickly confirms the reality of that question.  And if that then be true… have you ever considered the COLOR of the words that you speak into your own life as well into the lives of others that you converse with?  Are your words pleasing and or acceptable to God?  In Psalms 19 :14 David prayed,

“Let the WORDS of my mouth and the MEDITATION of my heart be acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, my rock and my Redeemer.” (NASB)

A very simplistic definition of the words “Words” and “Meditation” would tell us that “the WORDS of my mouth” relates to the actual words that we speak out loud, while “the MEDITATION of my heart” being the words we think about and in reality, are the words that we speak to ourselves.

So… with all that in mind, what WORDS do you speak (either aloud or to yourself) on a regular basis?  What COLORS do you employ in which to paint the daily world that you are involved with?  Are they bright with enthusiasm, encouragement and vitality or dull, dark and potentially depressing to yourself and others?  Now this doesn’t mean to imply that our words always have to be loud and overly joyful, but can also be soft and gentle as they bring enthusiasm, encouragement, vitality and Godly hope to people (including ourselves) who are hurting.

I was thinking on Fiver’s and my morning walk today, that I actually paint the foundation of my day as I get up, study my Bible and then shower and get dressed… way before I ever step out of the front door and into the public world around me. 

What do I do?  I confess the power and COLOR of the Word into my day!  I take scriptures that I have memorized over the years and keep active in my heart like “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13), “My God shall supply all my needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19), “I am strong, confident and courageous, I do not tremble and I am not dismayed for the Lord my God is with me wherever I go” (Joshua 1:9), “The joy of the Lord is my strength” (Nehemiah 8:10) etc… and I speak them out of my mouth and thereby pre-paint my day with a Godly, power-packed, encouraging landscape picture that serves as the foundation of the people, places and things that will become a part of the picture of my day!

So… what COLORS are you painting your day and the encounters that you have with others?  Are they bright purple, like the lady at Kroger’s yesterday?  I think that we all have unique COLORS and tones that best present our personalities and the way we encourage others with… wouldn’t you agree?

So… Give it some thought, pray about it, and then grab your brush and go out and paint your world!

Have an exciting, encouraging and brightly COLORED day today… Then slip me a comment and let me know about the COLOR of the words that you like to paint in the daily activities of your life.