“Whoever loves a pure heart and gracious speech will have the king as a friend.” Proverbs 22:11 NLT
How often do we hear; “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know.” Not that any one person is better than another, but some have roles of greater influence and control than others. This proves to be true over and over again in every area of our lives. Relationships are important.
I don’t know that kings are as prevalent or have the same meaning in our culture as they did in ancient one, but there will always people of position and power. It is good to have those people as friends, and it is certainly better to have them as friends than as enemies!
Proverbs gives us instructions on how to make the most of those relationships and form meaningful friendships; have a pure heart and speak with gracious speech. I want you to note that the Proverb does not say that we should only target specific people with our gracious speech but that it should become a pattern of our lives. As we treat everyone the same, it will include those that have positions of power and influence.
The key to all meaningful friendships is not conniving and positioning, but rather gracious speech that is seasoned with love.
Jesus said that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks (Matthew 12:34), nurturing a pure heart will lead to gracious speech.
This week nurture a pure heart and offer words of grace to those that are around you. It is the key to meaningful friendships.
In His Hands,
John
