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Painting/photo of Jerusalem Temple-Casual English Bible

Say something nice for a change

Stephen M. Miller
portrait of smiling young man
POWER OF A KIND WORD. Without intending it as a compliment, I said something kind to someone this week. The light that suddenly beamed out from that soul caught me off guard. Then it occurred to me: I should probably say kind stuff more often. Photo by Amgad Fahmi, flickr, CC 2.0.

I CAN’T TELL YOU what I said to someone yesterday. It would embarrass the person to which I said it.

But I’ll tell you this. After I spoke the words, it was like someone turned a light bulb on inside that person.

Huge beaming smile. Huge.

I was just stating a fact, not an opinion of any sort. But that fact apparently threw a switch, turned on the spotlight, and transfigured the person into a glowing soul who suddenly felt important and beloved. Which, of course, that person is.

The reaction caught me by surprise. I don’t see that kind of thing often enough. Perhaps because I don’t say that kind of thing often enough.

The kind of light I saw in the other person radiates. I got lit up too—by merely seeing the other person react to my words.

So I spent some time thinking about my words and about what God’s Word has to say about our words.

  • Gracious words are like a honeycomb,
    sweetness to the soul and health to the body.
    Proverbs 16:24
  • Say only what helps, each word a gift.
    Ephesians 4:29
  • The right word at the right time—beautiful!
    Proverbs 17:23

For more about encouraging others

  • Bushwhacking a friend with kind words
  • Kind words for depressed souls
  • What to do with a hurtful word
  • “Kindness,” Complete Bible Handbook, page 156

Blog subscribers who win books this week

  • Melissa Justice
  • Carla Spraggins

I give away free books each week to randomly selected subscribers to my free blog and quarterly newsletter.

Winners get the option of choosing my new release: A Quick Guided Tour Through the Bible – among about half a dozen other titles.

Bible Gateway Blogger Grid

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About Stephen M. Miller

STEPHEN M. MILLER is an award winning bestselling Christian author of easy-reading books about the Bible and Christianity and author of the Casual English Bible® paraphrase. His books have sold over two million copies and include The Complete Guide to the Bible and Who’s and Where’s Where in the Bible.

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Comments

  1. Tom Fowler

    October 29, 2015 at 7:26 am

    Paying compliments, being encouraging and supportive is all an art form. Your comments have to carry enough weight to be effective, but it is very easy to cross the line to be too effusive and appear phony and insincere.

    Reply
    • Stephen M. Miller

      October 29, 2015 at 9:14 am

      Thanks Tom. You’re right. I think many of us know some of those over-the-top people pleasers. But I think we’ve learned to gauge their language. When they say something is good, they mean it’s crappy. When they say it’s great, they mean it’s so-so. When they faint at your feet, you can tell it’s pretty good. Or their blood sugar is low.

      Reply

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