The Tongue - Edition #18: Kind Words

April 23rd, 2006

The Tongue – Edition #18: Kind Words

“One kind word can warm three winter months.”
Japanese Proverb

“Kind words don't wear out the tongue.”
“Kind words heal friendship's wounds.”
“Kind words will unlock an iron door.”
(From worldofquotes.com)

Proverbs 12:25
An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up.

A friend just sent this to me, as a matter fact. So here it goes.

• FIRST NAME?


• Jonathon


• WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE?


• Biblical name, although the spelling is different. Really, I am not sure…


• WHEN DID YOU LAST CRY?


• I don’t know… it was fairly recent. I guess I should get over it and get on.


• DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING?


• I guess so. I’ve had it all my life. I can read it, so it doesn’t bother me.


• WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCHMEAT?


• Ham.


• KIDS?


• One.


• IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU?


• Most definitely… although I would think that I’m weird, which would be true.


• DO YOU HAVE A JOURNAL?


• Yes. Several, as a matter of fact.


• DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT?


• I used to, but I am trying to tone it down a little, which is really hard, you know.


• DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS?


• Nope… that’s when I found out that I was allergic to codeine.


• WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP?


• Yes. I’ve already done some similar type rides and wouldn’t hold back all if someone got me back out there.


• WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL?


• Count Chocula. Although, I am choosing healthier cereals these days… which bites.


• DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF?


• No… should I?


• DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG?


• Physically speaking, NO. NO-NO-NO-NO-NO… mentally, no. Spiritually, maybe.


• WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM?


• Tin Roof, hand down. But I get what’s on sale, normally the double churned, because it’s just so good.


• SHOE SIZE?


• 10 ½ to 11 depending on the brand.


• RED OR PINK?


• Blue. Red, between the two – Warrior Red, Baby!!!


• WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT ME?


• Priorities. Sometimes due to priorities I loose sight of the big picture.


• WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST?


• Well, after burning so many bridges, and then mending most of them back again, I really miss one of the best guys around… Mr. Ren himself, who sent this to me.


• DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU?


• Not really important to get this shot back to me.


• WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING?


• Blue jeans (kinda faded blue jeans) and I just took of my shoes, which were black and white Vans.


• LAST THING YOU ATE?


• Chicken strips from Jack in the Box.


• WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW?


• Well, really nothing… I do hear Monsters, Inc. in the background, which my son is watching and then there is the washer and dryer running… but I am not listening to it intently.


• IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE?


• You know what, I would want to be one of those crayons that is multicolored… you know, the ones that have like a swirl of colors in there…


• FAVORITE SMELL?


• That smell of ozone right after it rains.


• WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE?


• Mary, who did help me out so much in my plans for tomorrow… well, really, she helped my wife in her plans to help encourage someone whose father recently passed away.


• THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE YOU ARE ATTRACTED TO?


• A lit up face! I love it when my wife smiles from ear to ear! It’s awesome jelly man.


• DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU?


• He’s mondo cool. And his laugh is too much!


• FAVORITE DRINK?


• Cherry Vanilla Coke!


• FAVORITE SPORT?


• Really? Really??!! The only sport that matters, baby, BASEBALL!


• Eye Color:


• Green, so says the better half.


• HAT SIZE?


• Large, but I think it’s like 8 ½ but I’m not so sure… the fitted hat I am wearing right now simply says large.


• DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS?


• If I didn’t, I would really look like the nerd I am…


• FAVORITE FOOD?


• “The Dish” which I think is Pork Chop Casserole… I simply know it as the dish, which my wife makes when we normally have company over.


• SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDING?


• Scary Movies, hands down. I simply love to be scared out of my mind.


• LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED AT THE MOVIES?


• Harry Potter and the Ring of Power… no wait, that’s the story I wrote online. It was Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, I think… the last Harry movie.


• WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING?


• Blue.


• SUMMER OR WINTER?


• I must agree with the Renmeister, Spring is best… but between the two, I would disagree… Winter. Hey, you got Valentine’s Day and Christmas and Ren’s birthday. What more can you ask for?


• HUGS OR KISSES?


• Hugs


• FAVORITE DESSERT?


• You know, I really dig those warm delights… they really are solid.


• WHO IS MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND?


• My wife.


• LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND?


• Ren, since he sent to me.


• WHAT BOOKS ARE YOU READING?


• Bible Code, Repentance, The Guilty Souls Guide to Grace, an HTML book, and some others…


• WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON TV LAST NIGHT?


• Ranger Game, of course. Koronka looked simply mesmerizing.


• FAVORITE SOUNDS?


• My son laughing and cooing.


• ROLLING STONE OR BEATLES?


• Dude, the stones need to retire. Seriously… Mick Jagger is what, like 80 now? The Beatles rule simply because they are not around anymore.


• THE FURTHEST YOU'VE BEEN FROM HOME?


• Jamaica, man.


• WHEN AND WHERE WERE YOU BORN?


• Clinton, OK back in 3/25/1974… that’s the home of the route 66 museum. If I didn’t tell you, I’m sure you wouldn’t know…


• WHO SENT THIS TO YOU?


• The Renmeister himself.

Galatians 5:22-26
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.

The way one speaks says a lot about the fruit of a person… it, in my mind, leads to what kind of fruit that person gets. When one lashes out at someone, how can that be love, kindness, or gentleness?

Kind (adj.):

1. Of a friendly, generous, or warm-hearted nature.


2. Showing sympathy or understanding; charitable.


3. Humane; considerate.


4. Forbearing; tolerant.


5. Generous; liberal.

Gentle (adj.):

1. Considerate or kindly in disposition; amiable and tender.


2. Not harsh or severe; mild and soft.


3. Easily managed or handled; docile.

So, I’ve been thinking that it is pretty much like this: the fruit of the tongue is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. I try to imagine a way that everything that comes out of my mouth is great. It’s not like that, but I have noticed some improvements, some changes, per se, in my actions. I was at midweek on Thursday and I used a seed analogy (I watch too much Pixar movies – this actually comes from “A Bug’s Life”). Change is like a seed; you want the plant to grow as quickly as possible, but to get it to grow, you have to take care of it. You water it, you make sure it is planted in good soil, and during this whole process, it takes time. To create a tree, you don’t plant it on Monday and boom Tuesday morning it’s a tree with apples galore. It doesn’t work like. And with this study, I am starting to see some growth in my life. I wish Todd would’ve emailed me about Saturday; I would’ve been there in a heart beat. That’s my favorite kind of reaching out. But back to talking, to be kind, you have to be warm-hearted, so to speak kind words, there has to be a constant within the heart that is warm. That means being kind to everyone. And everyone means everybody, which means every person I come in contact with… including the government workers. And to be honest, those at the postal office really need a kind word, just to cheer them up every once and a while. Anyway, I think I have reached the end point of today’s study. Johnny Out.