WEDNESDAY’S WORD

Coffee Hour @ Chicklit Power...

Word Lego’s

Thanks so much for joining me for Coffee Hour @ ChicklitPower and Trench Classes United for Wednesday’s Word. I just love this little break away from the demands of life, a few moments where we can just get a fresh perspective on things, all things! Grab your coffee and your Strand of Faith and let’s go tie some knots in that baby!

Just a few weeks ago, I was visiting my grandchildren, Dillan, Ty-Ty and our newest baby, Isaiah who live in Austin, Texas. Just writing that makes my heart sigh, wondering if I’ll ever be completely content with this separation, but then again, God’s in control and it is what it is so I must. Anyway, the weather was not so kind the entire time I was there and so we were inside for most of the ten days.

God definitely has a sense of humor for I was forced to just “be” with my favorite little people, not that I haven’t practiced that before with them, but it still is not something that comes naturally to/for me. While Isaiah slept most of the time away, I was given some beautiful opportunities to connect with both Dillan and Ty-Ty on a greater level and connect we did!

I just love talking with Dillan, a bright ten-year-old who has lots of questions, is a sort of black-and-white kind of thinker and has a need to understand why things are the way they are…and whatever that may be, it needs to be explained with the upmost of patience. And Ty-Ty, well, she’s quite the entertainer, almost always the center of attention, and quite good at it. Not very much time goes by before you’re laughing with her, not at her and finding the little child within. Well, Tyler had some Lego sets for us to build, one of them looked quite daunting. It was my thinking we should start with the small one, but this precious little giggle-maker wanted to start with the big one, so we did.

Oh, my goodness, I had no idea it would/could be so much fun. As we built the castle from the ground up, I was amazed at all the detail Lego thought of, from tables and chairs, to doorposts, to decorations for the outside. It was absolutely amazing. And the crazy thing for me was time flew! I sat still, being and building with my granddaughter for three+ hours!

Putting this Lego set together with Ty-Ty was unbelievably therapeutic for me. As we built it together, one Lego at a time – we literally took turns, each of us getting to place one Lego at a time -- it made me think of our words, how every last word that comes out of our mouth has some power, some significance, either to build up or to tear down. And the longer we wait in order to choose our words/pieces carefully, the more accurate we can be, and maybe we’d even say less!

When we completed the first Lego project, I felt this sense of accomplishment, and of course, my heart was full of joy having created this memory with her.  I stared it in wonder, captivated by how this project drew me in instantaneously, restoring something within I never knew I had lost, a piece of my childhood, for I had never, ever taken the time to build a Lego set, not as a child, and not even with my son when he was a child.

I took pictures because the detail was just amazing to me. Each Lego had such significance, and had to be placed just right because if we tried to put the wrong Lego in, often we wouldn’t know it until we had laid many more so we would have to tear it apart and rebuild it.

I couldn’t help but think what if we were to carefully build one another up with our words, such that when we walked away, we had a sense of accomplishment knowing that what we had planted could/would help them with any other negative messaging they may be receiving from others? See, unlike Lego building, we don’t get to take our words back, and once they leave our mouths, well, there are consequences: building up or tearing down.

Ephesians 4:29 tells us not to let any corrupt word proceed out of our mouths but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearer.

Oh, Abba, help me, one word at a time, to build others up, and not tear them down. Help me to be mindful of the things that I say so that whatever I say, when I walk away, I know that You will use each word to build them up, to remind them that they are precious in your sight. Help me to remember when I want to tear down and inflict pain with my words that the real enemy is not them, but the Enemy of this world just using them to get to me!

Love,

Evinda