What You Say and How You Say It

In the book of James, there is quite a bit of material relative to the words of our mouth.  What we say, as well as the way we say it, can have an impact on others and dramatically affect our witness for Christ.  Here are two verses from the 1st chapter of James:
19So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath;
26If anyone among you thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one's religion is useless.

Not only is it critical to examine the words of our mouth, but also the way we communicate can be a factor to how well we are understood and how our words connect with other people.   James is encouraging us to exercise self-control over our speech - being slow to speak, in contrast with an ear that is quick to listen. And, the tone of our communication is also important - we have to be conscious of how we say things, speaking with clarity and with a sense of compassion, not in haughtiness or harshness, but with grace. Words have incredible potential, and we have been charged by the Lord to exercise them wisely.

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In the 15th chapter of Proverbs, we can read a number of verses that can inspire us to be more reflective of Christ in the words we speak:
1A soft answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger.2The tongue of the wise uses knowledge rightly, But the mouth of fools pours forth foolishness.
4A wholesome tongue is a tree of life, But perverseness in it breaks the spirit.
7The lips of the wise disperse knowledge, But the heart of the fool does not do so.
28 The heart of the righteous studies how to answer, But the mouth of the wicked pours forth evil.

If the company you work for were to offer a class to reduce your Southern accent, would you enroll? The Southern experience, I believe, does include the accents - some more pronounced than others, but it's part of the culture of this region.

UPI.com reports that the Oak Ridge National Laboratory's proposed "Southern Accent Reduction" class will not be taught after some employees complained that they found the class offensive. The six-week course was going to be taught by "accent reduction trainer" Lisa Scott, and students were going to learn to "speak with a more neutral American accent" so they could "be remembered for what you say and not how you say it."

The story states that the Knoxville News Sentinel reported that by using the "code-switching" technique, employees would learn to neutralize their southern accents.

Oak Ridge National Laboratory spokesman David Keim said that, "Given the way that it came across, they decided to cancel it...It probably wasn't presented in the right way and made it look like ORNL had some problem with having a Southern accent, which of course we don't. That was not the intent at all."

ORNL has offered accent-reduction courses in the past, but usually for foreign nationals. By the way, if you want to lose your accent, you can go to Ms. Scott's website at www.losemyaccent.com.

This rather odd story can really cause us to think about the way we speak. Again, even though somehow I ended up living up in the South my entire life, including 4 years in East Tennessee, and I didn't end up with much of an accent. But, it's not about the accent - I think for each of us, especially as we communicate God's truth, there are at least three important components - content, clarity, and comportment.

The quote from the UPI story is that this class was intended for people to be remembered "for what you say and not how you say it." I actually think that both of these are important as we seek to make an impact for Christ and radiate His character. We do need to be concerned about the content of our words. What we say can encourage or discourage, can heal or wound, and can make a statement that honors Him or not. If we're careful about what we speak, thinking before the words come out, we can be winning with our words.

There is also the "how you say it" part - but I contend that an audible accent is not a deterrent, but we do need to make every effort to speak with clarity - so that people will understand what we are trying to say and the points that we are trying to make. This is especially important when we are communicating Scriptural truth - we need to be equipped with knowledge, as well as to be able to connect with the mind of another.

Finally, comportment is a component of communicating effectively. Our behavior reflects our relationship with Christ. And, the way we speak, with regard to tone, can determine how effective that we are in presenting the Lord to thers. If we are harsh or haughty, we actually undercut the words that we speak. We can be challenged to allow His nature to shape the tone of our words, as well as the actions we take.