I wanted to share this devotion with you today. I have read and re-read! WOW, this is not easy to do at all! However, what this devotion instructs is so true. So often we don't want to hurt feelings, cause trouble, etc. but when we don't "speak the truth".... we actually cause even more damage or hurt in the long run! I have always felt it best to take the time to "think" about your response before making it......pray about what you should say and how you should say it......and make sure you tell the person, "I have to be honest with you and my words may not be what you are wanting to hear." Sometimes it is so hard to know how to handle a situation! Please read the devotion below and let it sink into your thoughts for the day. Maybe you will decide to comment below on how you perceive this devotion or how you handle things like this. I would love to hear your thoughts! ~Until Later

“Let your ‘Yes’ be yes, and your ‘No,’ no.” James 5:12

Remember when people said what they meant? Maybe you didn’t like it, but you understood what they meant, and you knew they meant it. The word “cool” meant somewhere between warm and cold, and if you said, “wicked good,” someone would’ve asked which one it was. It seems like straightforward speech is going the way of the horse and carriage.

The Bible tells us, “Let your ‘Yes’ be yes, and your ‘No,’ no.” In other words, mean what you say and say what you mean. Failing to do so damages relationships. We avoid saying “no,” or we say “yes” when we don’t want to, out of the fear of rejection. And what are the results?

(1) We live with stress, anger or resentment over feeling mistreated by others.
(2) We feel trapped whichever way we go: “If I say no, you’ll be mad at me; if I don’t, I’ll be mad at myself and you!” So we stay stuck in our own pressurized trap.
(3) The other person will never know how we really feel, or understand why we act as we do. Unless we say what we feel, we’ll never get what we need from others. People don’t change, until we change how we interact with them.
(4) Our choice to avoid what we fear is what makes us a victim, not other people’s words or actions.
(5) We become part of the problem, surrendering to others the power God gave us to determine our own direction and set our own boundaries.

So, we should always say what we mean, whether it’s “yes” or “no!”