I grew up in East Tennessee, and if you could hear me talk, you'd know I have the accent to prove it! But I went to college in Texas. One summer there was a group of students, all Texans, going to Europe, and I went with them. As we were walking through a large museum, our group was making casual conversation, and a man standing nearby--a complete stranger--turned to me and said, "East Tennessee." I looked up and asked, "What?" "You're from East Tennessee." He didn't ask me, he told me. "How did you know?" I asked. He laughed as he replied, "I'd know that accent anywhere!" As it turned out, he was from Kentucky and often traveled through Tennessee while working.
You can tell a lot about a person by the way they talk. Like salt seasons food, so should grace season our speech with kindness, patience, encouragement, joyfulness, gratefulness. Like salt preserves food, let the salt of your Christian influence preserve peace in relationships and situations. Whether we're with Christians or non-Christians, our speech can be a tremendous witness of Christ in our lives.
In the margin of my Bible, I have written the quote, "Like a cow at a cowlick, all creatures crave salt; so all people crave words of blessing." That's what this verse means to me, words of "grace seasoned with salt." Not words that rub salt into wounds, but words that bring healing. Our conversation should be refreshing to those around us.
When Jesus was arrested and taken to the High Priest, Peter stood outside by the fire. After denying twice that he knew Jesus, someone said to him, "Surely you are one of them, for your accent gives you away," (Matthew 27:73). Would someone think you're a Christian by the way you talk? Would they think you're not a Christian by the way you talk? Take notice--your accent gives you away!
Becky
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