I’ve heard sayings and a song about how words are like stones tossed into water, causing ripples to form that reach farther than the stone did. Toss a word of anger out, and its affects can last a long time in more places than you thought it could. Toss a word of kindness out, and its affects can last a long time in more places than you thought it could. So frequently we disregard the power words have, both with others and ourselves.
Sometimes I’ll just toss a stone into the water and don’t watch all the ripples. I do this with words sometimes, too. I may not know just how far those ripples reached, but reach they did, good or bad.
Sometimes a word hits or disturbs something under the water, causing more than just ripples. You might awaken something that needs to be awakened and moved, and now it swims around productively. Or you might injure something that writhes in pain, thrashing and disturbing the water more. Whatever it is, it can stay that way long after you’re gone.
Be careful of the stone you toss into the waters. Proverbs 13:3, 18:21; Matthew 12:36-37; Ephesians 4:29; Luke 6:45