Facebook asked me yesterday if I’d like to know what words I use the most when I post to my wall. It seemed like a fun activity. After clicking my approval, some software somewhere read my wall, compiled words, and sorted them by frequency. The result was the word cloud you see here. I was happy to see “kids” front and center and my son’s name as well. It was no surprise to see “church” or “Yosemite” – though my wife teased me that my friend Brett bumped her off the list, which does cast a little doubt on the accuracy, but at least Brent affirmed that I made his list too!
Of course, Facebook only provides a glimpse into our lives, and the parts of our lives that we choose to share – but it’s worth some reflection to ask ourselves, What am I about? What drives me? What do I talk about? What do I think about? Life is made up of words and words reflect the heart. (Luke 6:45 and Matthew 15:18 discuss this.)
Whether or not you allow Facebook to count your words, consider if God counted our words and made a list of what typically comes out of our mouths. The apostle James warns that while the tongue is a small part of the body, it is the most powerful. (James 3)
The great thing about compiling our words, is we can start today shifting the balance toward words that are positive and build each other up.
Send someone a note today and let the words of your mouth reveal who you are and why you do what you do. As you encourage them you also define who you are.
