“Researchers have shown that
hurt feelings from words affect the same area in the brain – the cingulate
gyrus – as a broken bone or physical injury.” Dr. Caroline Leaf
Most
of us have probably been at one end or the other of the chant, “Sticks and
stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me.” Brave words usually
shouted as a shield against the sting of verbal insult.
The
truth is words have more power to hurt than any stick or stone ever could.
Who
among us doesn’t have a deep wound from words – words sometimes hurled at us
with deliberate venom and other times words casually tossed our direction
without thought of their destructive force. Words used to judge, diminish or to
dismiss us altogether.
Words
have the power to influence our perceptions of both ourselves and others. That
in turn, impacts how we respond to others, how we treat them, whether or not we
include or exclude them, and if we judge them as worthy or unworthy of our
time, energy, resources and compassion.
What
comes to mind when you hear words like: prostitute, hooker, pimp or stripper?
What thoughts go through your mind when you read or see a news story about a
strip club or spa being busted for prostitution? What does your heart feel when
you see mug shots of those arrested for prostitution?
Do
you allow the words to create an “us and them” gap in your mind and heart? If
we equate words such as prostitute or stripper with dismissive, negative words,
thoughts and images, we begin to increase the gap in our minds and hearts
between “us” and “them”. We can begin to convince ourselves that we are “good”
and they are “bad”. We can further convince ourselves that they deserve this
life they’re in, and even that they chose this life. We essentially dehumanize them,
which results in a disconnection of feeling any responsibility to them or their
situation.
Or,
perhaps you fall into the trap of pop culture and use phrases like, “that’s so
pimp” and shrug off music lyrics that objectify sex and women. We can allow all
of this to permeate our lives and desensitize us to the truth, making it that
much easier to turn a blind eye to their plight. By normalizing this mindset
and culture, we diminish the true consequences of pimping and objectifying both
men and women.
But,
if we fail to see their humanity, if we fail to see precious humans trapped in
a nightmare, we diminish our own humanity as well. We need to adjust our words
so our perspective will shift.
If,
instead, we begin to use words like: victim, exploited, trapped, hurting, and
lost, we begin to understand their true circumstance. It has been said that no
child ever dreams that one day they will grow up to be a stripper or
prostitute. They have landed in a nightmare and we are charged with giving them
a chance to dream again.
And
if we begin to use words like: valued, beloved, cherished, precious daughters
(and sons) of the Most High God, we begin to remember their true identity. No
longer can we think in terms of “us and
them”; there is only “us”, and all of us precious children of God. We are, all
of us, in this together. We are, all of
us, of equal value and worth.
Let
us then choose our words wisely. Let us speak words of truth and hope and
affirmation to those living in the nightmare that they might be reminded of
their true identity and once again dare to dream. Let us speak words of
exhortation and challenge and encouragement to those of us who have the power
to change the nightmare, that we might find the strength, courage and
perseverance to do so.
Let
us change the world, one word at a time.
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Gracious words are
a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.
Proverbs 16:24 NIV
Do not let
any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for
building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who
listen.
Ephesians 4:29 NIV
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Scarves for Outreach: Do you knit or crochet? Help us meet our goal of 200 hand-made scarves for our outreach teams to distribute in the fall! We do need them ASAP for our upcoming packing event! Please contact Holly at hkoehler@ameritech.net for more information.
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Click on the Calendar of Events tab for the full year calendar!
