Instead, speaking the truth in love,
we will grow to become in every respect
the mature body of
him who is the head, that is, Christ.
Ephesians 4:15
Many Christians are familiar with this commonly-quoted verse from Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, and it is frequently used to guide the way people speak to each other. Recently, I’ve found myself in a handful of situations that required humility and careful communication to resolve conflict or work through relational issues between people. I revisited this verse and found a fresh perspective and connection to my personal life of worship.
Paul exhorts us to be people who speak with both truth and love. He tells us these are instrumental in our growth to become fully formed disciples of Jesus. I believe these two qualities must appear in equal measure in our communication. Too much emphasis on truth (being “brutally honest”) destroys relationships and leaves a trail of hurt behind us. Communication that has love—without honesty and transparency—leaves others feeling disrespected over time. When God speaks, He always gets this balance right. He speaks to us with love as His motivation (1 John 4:7-10) and He is incapable of speaking anything other than truth. (Numbers 23:19)
For me, the challenge is HOW?
This is where my life of worship enters the picture.
In order to speak truth, I have to start that work in my own mind. As I engage my mind in worship - thinking about God, meditating on His word, letting God’s thoughts become my thoughts (Romans 12:2), I find honesty becomes my native language.
In order to speak love I have to start that work in my own heart. I strive to draw my heart close to God’s heart in worship (whether in song, prayer, meditation, etc). When I do this, I start viewing others through a similar lens of love as God does. Compassion rises in my heart, and I begin to speak value and respect to people in a way that resembles the heart of God. A few lyrics from the popular worship song “Hosanna” (Brooke Ligtertwood/Hillsong Music Publishing) illustrate this alignment of hearts well:
Break my heart for what breaks Yours
Everything I am for Your Kingdom's cause
Truth and love … fueled by a personal life of worship. In this season of my life, I feel the prompting of God’s Spirit to dig deeper into these concepts each day, and I hope I’ll get to see my communication with others change in the process.
Thanks for reading,
Brent
bmills@b4church.org
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