PALM SUNDAY: WORDS MATTER

READINGS: PALM SUNDAY

There is the story of a professor who was traveling by boat to an island. As the boat set sail, he asked the sailor, “Do you know anything about Oceanology?”, to which the sailor answered, “No Sir”, and then the professor yelled out, “What on earth, then, do you know as a sailor? You will die of illiteracy”. After a while, a heavy wind developed, tossing the boat around, and the sailor, using his expertise, made the situation look worse. Turning to the professor, he asked, “Do you know anything about “swiminology”, to which the professor answered, “No”. “In that case”, said the sailor, “You are about to die from “Sharkology” and “Crocodiology” because of your “Mouthology” and “Insultology”. My friends, words have consequences.

This Sunday marks the beginning of Holy Week and progression of the events, from this day to Good Friday, go from the people shouting, “Hosanna Son of David” to “Crucify Him, crucify Him”. Scripture says, “with the tongue we praise our Lord… and with it we curse…. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be” and it goes on to describe the tongue as “a restless evil, full of deadly poison” (Ref. James 3:8-9)

My friends, our words matter and have power; power to create emotions and cause actions that can shape live destinies. The words we speak can become the world we live in because words have the power to modulate our attitudes which, in turn, can lower or elevate our altitude, as we go about the business of living in this world. 

On the personal level, therefore, it is important that we speak to ourselves like someone that we love. As Scripture says, "Kind words are like honey—sweet to the soul and healthy for the body" (Proverb 16:24). Our words need to be positive, encouraging, motivating, uplifting, and capable of instilling belief and hope in ourselves. The Bible says, “The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us”. 

The same is true when it comes to what we say to others. The words that we speak can push others into a fruitful destiny, make them healthier and stronger, and reduce their stress in life. Kind and fruitful words can create, nourish, build, encourage, and strengthen others. That is why every word that we speak needs to be words that uplift and never words that tear down; words that give others confidence in their abilities, lift them off the canvas, help them walk taller, and give them the capacity to do things that they couldn’t, by themselves, dream of. We need to remember that our words can create lifetime positive or negative memory in the minds and hearts of those who hear it, and that, while our words can be forgiven, they are rarely forgotten, and even when people forget, they seldom forget how it made them feel. 

So, let us be healers, lifters, builders, and encouragers by what we say, not castigators and detractors. Yes, while it is difficult to tame the tongue, according to the Bible, let us continually pray to God to give us the grace needed to tame it. Amen!