The Queen's Word

Words are amazing.  There is so much to learn just from words.  Billions of words go into books that we can read and learn so much from.  There really is no end to the things we can learn, or to the written word.  I love to read and write.  I'm good at pouring out the feelings of my heart into writing.  But words don't come just on paper.  Words come from our tongue in the form of communication, and sometimes that can be a stumbling block.  It's one of my challenges of mortality.  I very often cannot put into words on my tongue the things that are in my heart.  It takes help from above for me to accomplish that, it just doesn't come easy.

Words are important in another way because "In the beginning was the Word.  And the Word was with God, and the Word was God."  John 1:1  Word is another name for Jesus Christ, and God the Father.

Picking up from the last post on Angels, and Elder Holland's talk on "The Ministry of Angels" where he said towards the end: "In the process of praying for those angels to attend us, may we all try to be a little more angelic ourselves--with a kind word, a strong arm, a declaration of faith and the 'covenant wherewith [we] have covenanted.' "

Do you ever feel like Alma when he said, "O that I were an angel, and could have the wish of mine heart, that I might go forth and speak with the trump of God!"  Alma 29:1

I would really love to speak with the tongue of Angels.  Elder Holland addressed this in a talk "The Tongue of Angels" in the May 2007 Ensign.  This was a rather painful talk for me to listen to, and study, as I realized all the ways in which I have failed to speak with the 'tongue of angels'...but as is Elder Holland's custom he has a way to ever so lovingly teach us what is wrong and how to make it right, and he does it with such great love.  Elder Holland truly is in similitude of our Savior Jesus Christ in his love for us, because I feel that love.

He starts out in this talk telling us how powerful words are, even to the extent that when we work by faith it is through words.  He said, "Like all gifts 'which cometh from above,' words are 'sacred, and must be spoken with care, and by constraint of the Spirit.'  (Doctrine and Covenants 63:64)  He cautioned us on how we speak of others...and perhaps even more importantly, how we speak of ourselves.

Elder Holland continues, "The voice that bears profound testimony, utters fervent prayer, and sings the hymns of Zion can be the same voice that berates and criticizes, embarrasses and demeans, inflicts pain and destroys the spirit of oneself and of others in the process...Is this something we could all work on just a little?"

"Given the damage that can be done with our tongues, little wonder the Savior said, 'Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man.'"  (Mathew 15:11)

"It goes without saying that negative speaking so often flows from negative thinking, including negative thinking about ourselves.  We see our own faults, we speak--or at least think--critically of ourselves, and before long that is how we see everyone and everything.  No sunshine, no roses, no promise of hope or happiness.  Before long, we and everyone around us are miserable."

We, as Latter-day Saints are so blessed to have the gospel in our lives.  We of all the people on the face of the earth have reason to hope and be optimistic.   There is so much hope in the gospel, knowing we will be resurrected and that there is a better world to come.  And, knowing that the Savior Jesus Christ has made it possible for us to obtain all that.  As Elder Holland said, "We should honor the Savior's declaration to 'be of good cheer.'"  And why did He say to be of good cheer?  Because even though we may have tribulation in the world Christ said, "I have overcome the world."  (John 16:33)

I have been thinking a lot about faith, and how as we exercise our faith, hope comes of it.  Having increased faith and hope increases our chances of having charity.  And if we have increase of these three things we are more patience and feel more peace and joy in our hearts.  We are living more on the positive side of life.  We are living in gratitude.

Elder Holland said we should, "Speak hopefully.  Speak encouragingly, including about yourself.  Try not to complain and moan incessantly...Yes, life has its problems, and yes, there are negative things to face, but please accept one of Elder Holland's maxims for living--no misfortune is so bad that whining about it won't make it worse."  He also said, "Our words, like our deeds, should be filled with faith and hope and charity, the three great Christian imperatives so desperately needed in the world today."

Elder Holland then points out some verses in 2 Nephi chapter 31 where Nephi calls us to "follow the Son [of God], with full purpose of heart, that after ye have received the baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost, [ye] can speak with a new tongue, yea, even with the tongue of angels...And...how could ye speak with the tongue of angels save it were by the Holy Ghost?  Angels speak by the power of the Holy Ghost; wherefore, they speak the words of Christ."

That's a relief to me, knowing that even the angels themselves need the power of the Holy Ghost to speak with the tongue of angels.  I know that whenever something has actually come out of my mouth right, it was definitely through the power of the Holy Ghost. 

Elder Holland pointed out that when our Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ speak to us--"And they will--it will not be in the wind, nor in the earthquake, nor in the fire, but it will be a voice still and small, a voice tender and kind.  It will be with the tongue of angels."  Kind of like how Elder Holland spoke to us in his talk....definitely with the power of the Holy Ghost and the tongue of angels.

A few years ago, as we were studying the New Testament in Sunday School, and I was reading the New Testament, and not long after Elder Holland's address on the Tongue of Angels, I came to a verse in James that really struck me, and for weeks I could not get it out of my mind.  It was so powerful in fact, that I memorized it and studied each and every attribute in it so I could more fully understand it.

The whole 3rd chapter of James is on governing your tongue, and that how as we do that we gain perfection.  His words are much like Elder Holland's talk, where he shows us what is wrong, and then lovingly tells us how we can correct it.  It's interesting how he said we can bridle a horse with a bit, or how a very small helm can turn a great ship even being driven by fierce winds, and that every beast has been tamed of mankind, but "the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison."  [meaning we are all going to slip up now and then.]  He said if a man's works are righteous his conversation will show meekness and peace, but if we are not righteous, the results are contention.  We see a lot of contention and heated debates going on in our world today.

But here is wisdom in James 3:13

"But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy."

So simple, really.

And who does it emulate?  Our Father in Heaven and His Son Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost.

First pure.  Such a perfect first phrase to remember for our words.  Let them be pure.  We come into the world pure.  Think of a newborn infant, or pure water, or the earth clean and fresh after rain and how it smells, or the color white.  The dictionary defines pure as unmixed, untainted, simple, spotless, faultless, innocent.  Our language should be first pure.  Even though we no longer have a pure language, we can do our best to make our words pure, and this can start with pure thoughts.

Second, peaceable.  Who doesn't love peace?  Peace is like spring when the sun comes out to warm you and the world is bursting with all it's colors and flowers and fragrances.  Peace is a sunset, a bird in flight, a breeze whispering through the leaves of the trees.  Peace is quiet stillness that clears your mind of clutter and confusion.  Peace is a warm hug, a friendly smile.  The dictionary defines it as freedom from war, harmony, quietness of mind, calm, repose.  Harmony is to be in agreement, like good music.  When we agree with each other it would certainly rule the tongue.  Peace is getting along, depending on each other, feeling safe with each other--so we can speak what we feel and be valued--not scorned or discredited. 

Third, gentle.  That is such a lovely word.  I long to be a gentle person.  We pick up gently a newborn infant, a baby animal, a breakable object, an egg.  Breakable.  Do our words need to be gentle so we don't break tender hearts and hurt feelings?  It's hard here in mortality.  We need gentleness and tenderness.  The dictionary says it's mild, quiet, not rough or severe; soft and soothing; courteous; moderate; gradual; wellborn.  The tone of our voice is everything.  Sometimes we're not even aware of it.  My daughter Emily used to say to me, "Why are you being so mean?"  I would be confused, because what I had said wasn't mean, but the tone of my voice made my words mean.  I thought I was just frustrated, and I was.  But maybe those things were of little consequence.  They do pass us by and we wish later we had been more kind.

Easy to be entreated.  The footnotes in the scriptures say pliant, easily persuaded.  Pliant is pliable or easily bent or influenced.  Can we persuade others with coercion [compelling or forcing] or harsh words or a sharp tongue, or criticism, or contention.  I think with my daughter Emily, if I had taken a more pliant approach we could have worked out our frustrations, even with happiness!  Thank goodness for forgiveness.  This also had a cross reference in Doctrine and Covenants 121:42  "...only by persuasion, by long-suffering, by gentleness and meekness, and by love unfeigned [not by pretense or sham], by kindness, and pure knowledge [and who gives us that?  God!], which shall greatly enlarge the soul without hypocrisy [assuming a false appearance of virtue] and without guile [cunning, deceit].

Full of mercy.  Just as we desire the Savior's mercy, we should be willing to give our mercy.  Mercy is compassion.  Mercy is refraining from the infliction of suffering by one who has the right and power to inflict it.

Good fruits.  Hmmm, think about the best and sweetest fruit you have ever tasted.  Then think about how disgusting bad fruit is, especially when you've paid a high price for it in the store.  And can you tell it's bad before you buy it?  Usually not.  And if we had to go without good fruit, our health would suffer.  Good fruits in language would be delicious and desirable, sweet and nourishing.  When we use good nourishing words, those words bear good fruits.  How much more whole would we all be if we were nourished with the good fruit of language?

Without partiality.  Partiality is favoritism or a fondness for.  It's easy to speak nice to people we have a favoritism for, but the Lord wants us to speak kindly to everyone.  Like it says in Luke 6:32-33  "For if ye love them that love you, what thanks have ye?  Or if ye do good to them that do good to you, what thanks have ye?"  Which leads to the last advise...

Without hypocrisy.  We need to strive for these true feelings of kindness to come from our heart and not just pretending to be kind when we are inwardly thinking unkind thoughts.  That's probably the hardest one to work on.  Do you think that's why James put it last?  We will definitely need the Savior's help on many of these.

But as part of the Quest to become Queenly, our words are very important.