Who Sang it Better

Psalm 39:2-3, "So I remained utterly silent, not even saying anything good.  But my anguish increased; my heart grew hot within me.  While I meditated, the fire burned; then I spoke with my tongue..." (NIV).

Words are risky, but maybe not as risky as silence. 

I'm not talking about the spiritual discipline kind of silence, the deep silence when not only your mouth, but your heart also, is quiet - waiting on God to speak.  That silence is always good, but like so many words and concepts in the English language, silence can mean different things.

Sometimes we silence only our mouths, afraid of what other people might think when the words come spilling out.  We silence our mouths about the reality of our narratives, we silence our mouths about the injustices surrounding us, we silence our mouths about the truth.  This kind of silence is not helpful.

I've been thinking about the "who wore it better" thing, and I actually think there might be a good parallel here for "who said it/sang it better"...

For a long time, I've thought that John Mayer might be onto something, "Living out the same old moment knowing you'd be better off instead, if you could only... say what you need to say (x8)"...

I guess he had a lot to say...

Then, recently, Rachel Platten came on the scene exclaiming,

"All those things I didn't say, wrecking balls inside my brain, I will scream them loud tonight, Can you hear my voice this time," and I thought maybe she captured the depth of unspoken words just a little more intensely...

We're all just a breath (Psalm 39:5)... a mist (James 4:14)... a moment...  You see things I don't.  You see things I can't.  And you need to give life to them with words.  We need to speak truth into the lives of each other, because without that, we all miss out on something important.  We miss out on perspective.  The world misses out on the things that only you and I know.  And we only have so much time to share these things, because life is short, and some things are pressing.  It can be difficult to get the words out.  It may seem impossible, actually it may be impossible, to get the timing right.  But maybe we should just spill it.  No regrets.

 
L.