A Note from Jessie-Covenant Newsletter, December 2019

His voice was kind, earnest, and brimming with emotion. “I do,” Steele said.

Her voice was bold and joyous. “Congratulations, you are hired!” the Head of School boomed.

His voice was joking and tender and full of love. “YOU are going to be a mama?!” my dad laughed.

Her voice was quiet, clear, and desperately sad. “Your dad died,” my mom whispered into the phone.

His voice was soft and round as his small, rosy cheek. “Ma Ma,” Vaughan cooed for the first time.

Her voice was clinical and distant. “It’s a girl,” the nurse stated. And I burst into grateful tears.

There are certain voices from my past that still float through my mind, as fresh and close as if my ears just received their messages a moment before. If I close my eyes and concentrate, I can hear the intonation, the vocal quality, the volume of each word. I open my eyes and am surprised to find the slight wetness of new tears.

So many world-altering words spoken and heard over a person’s lifetime. They seem to take on an additional dimension beyond time and space, don’t they?

As we enter this time of Advent, remembering the angel’s surprising appearances and revelations, I cannot help but wonder about Mary… How many times did she replay Gabriel’s voice in her mind throughout her precious life? How often did she return to the angel’s words and ponder the vast difference between the before and the after of that moment’s message? And I also cannot help but wonder, more literally, what did Gabriel’s voice sound like when he announced that world-altering, life-changing, earth-shattering news? How did those words meet Mary’s ears and nestle into her heart?

When you stop to think about words that have changed your life, what comes to mind? I’d be willing to bet there are at least a few that still pack an emotional punch when you pause to recall them in specific detail. And perhaps there are other words from your past, not necessarily connected to a major life milestone, that are evocative all the same… Unexpected praise? Crushing critique? Inspiring encouragement? A witty remark that someone spoke decades ago that still brings a smile to your face?

And have you ever stopped to consider whether or not any of your words have made a lasting impact on others? If others perhaps replay your voice in their minds throughout their precious lives?

As the only category of God’s creation with the gift of speech, how do we use our language to help or to hinder? To praise God or to promote ourselves? To raise up or tear down? To communicate love or give voice to condemnation? Words are so very, very powerful.

God, please help me use my words in a way that pleases you. Moreover, please help me keep my ears keenly tuned in to your voice above all the other noise I encounter each day. Help prepare my heart to receive your messages of peace, love, and hope throughout this season of Advent so that I may in turn share them with others.

After all, who knows what life-altering words await each of us, but if we hold fast to Gabriel’s message, we indeed have nothing to fear:

“With God, you see, nothing is impossible.”

Luke 1:37

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