Mental & Emotional Health

There’s not much in this world I enjoy more than a good spoonful of honey on some yogurt. It’s nature’s perfect food—rich, sweet, and somehow still pure. It doesn’t spoil. It doesn’t rot. It never goes bad. In fact, honey has been found in ancient tombs—still good. That’s wild!

The Bible actually uses honey as a metaphor more than once, but one of my favorite verses is Proverbs 16:24:

“Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.” (NIV)

Let that sit with you for a second. Sweet to the soul. Healing to the bones. That’s the power of a kind word.

Think back—has someone ever spoken something over your life that stuck with you? Maybe it was a parent who told you they were proud of you, a coach who believed in you, or a friend who reminded you that you’re not alone. Those words don’t disappear after they’re spoken. They settle deep into your soul. They fuel you on hard days. They come to mind when you need a reason to keep going.

That’s the gift of gracious words.

And let’s be honest—those words aren’t just nice. They’re healing. They’re good for your mental health. They restore your sense of worth. They breathe life when the world feels heavy. That’s what Scripture is getting at here.

But here’s the flip side. We can’t just sit around waiting to receive gracious words—we’ve got to give them too. If your words were a condiment, what would they be—honey or hot sauce? One soothes, the other stings. One brings comfort, the other can cause a firestorm.

Here’s the truth:

Our words are never neutral.

They either build someone up or break someone down. They either leave a sweet taste or a bitter aftershock.

And in a world that often rewards sarcasm, gossip, or the perfectly timed come-back, gracious speech is more than countercultural—it’s spiritual.

So here’s the challenge:

Speak life today.
Call out the gold in someone.
Be intentional with your tone and your text messages.
Encourage the coworker, the spouse, the child, the barista—whoever’s in front of you.

Don’t underestimate the impact your words can have on someone’s soul. What you say might just be the exact thing they needed to hear.

Have you ever felt like life is just flying by you? Work is cranking out endless tasks and responsibilities… The kids have countless events that they need chauffeuring to… There are multiple required social events on your calendar filling up your weekends… And some how you need to find time to just simply go to the bathroom in all that mess of a schedule.

This happened to me the other day. I was in a rush to get as many things into one 24 hour day as possible. I was running from one event to another and found that it was making me grouchy, irritable, and just down right testy.

I had to hit pause.

For about 40 minutes I simply sat still and watched life around me. Instead of watching life go by I did my best to be fully present in the midst of it. I sat and journaled and prayed and listened to some music. In those 40 minutes I felt more refreshed and rejuvenated than before.

When life is flying by you and feeling out of control try these four things…

1. Pause

As difficult as this may be, there are times when you need to simply just unplug. This might mean the dishes in the sink pile up for a little bit. Or the lawn doesn’t get mowed today. These things need to get done, but not necessarily right now. Your pause could be 30 minutes, 2 hours, or even a full day. It all depends on what you are willing to carve out of your schedule.

2. Reflect

Our minds are moving a million miles an hour, thinking about thousands of different things. It is a gift to stop and process what has been happening in your life the past few days, or weeks. It could be as simple as answering two questions: Where have I seen God lately, and What has God been showing me through these past few days or weeks?

3. Pray

Prayer is our intimate connection with our Creator, our Heavenly Father, and our God. Prayer is an act of depending on God in all things. When I am running my life and going a million miles an hour, my greatest temptation is to believe that I can do it all on my own. Prayer reminds me that I can’t. I am desperately in need of God’s help and presence in my life.

4. Journal

There is something life giving about writing in a journal. It has been a habit that I have added to my life for the past 8 years. I have filled a few moleskin’s with the thoughts, prayers, and tears of what’s going on around me. Writing is slow. It causes you to think, and process. Writing things out quite possibly can also help you figure things out.

What would you add to the list? Leave a comment below.

~Peter