Whoever isolates himself seeks his own desire;
he breaks out against all sound judgment.
A fool takes no pleasure in understanding,
but only in expressing his opinion.
The words of a man's mouth are deep waters;
the fountain of wisdom is a bubbling brook.
A fool's lips walk into a fight,
and his mouth invites a beating.
A fool's mouth is his ruin,
and his lips are a snare to his soul.
The words of a whisperer are like delicious morsels;
they go down into the inner parts of the body.
If one gives an answer before he hears,
it is his folly and shame.
The one who states his case first seems right,
until the other comes and examines him.
The lot puts an end to quarrels
and decides between powerful contenders.
From the fruit of a man's mouth his stomach is satisfied;
he is satisfied by the yield of his lips.
Death and life are in the power of the tongue,
and those who love it will eat its fruits. (Proverbs 18:1, 2, 4, 6-8, 13, 17, 18, 20, 21 ESV)
Communication is such a beautiful and yet challenging thing. I love talking to people and learning about them and their experiences. But communicating through conflict and misunderstanding is very common and very challenging. I have found communicating with people of different cultures, backgrounds and personalities to be very difficult. And I don't like when it is hard to communicate and their is tension. But I am trying to learn more about myself and others in order to communicate better with others.
I love the advice here in proverbs about communication. I pray I would communicate with wisdom and love especially by listening well.
Amen
