Goodness is not only what goes into your mouth. It is what comes out of it.

We usually think of consumption as food and drink. But the original idea behind Consuming Goodness has always been bigger than that.

What are you feeding your mind? What words are you repeating to yourself? And what are you sending back out into the lives of the people around you?

Luke 6:45 reminds us that the mouth speaks from what fills the heart. That makes our words worth paying attention to.

Words Can Build or Tear Down

A bitter thought repeated often enough can begin to sound like truth. So can comparison, hopelessness and the voice that says you are not enough.

But we do not have to give every thought permanent residence.

Philippians 4:8 gives us a beautiful filter: think on what is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent and worthy of praise. That is not pretending difficult things do not exist. It is choosing what deserves to occupy our minds.

Speak Goodness

Words shape relationships. They can encourage or humiliate, calm or inflame, create hope or deepen despair. We will not always say the perfect thing, but we can become more intentional about the kind of words we practice.

Speak hope before hopelessness becomes a habit. Speak gratitude instead of constantly rehearsing what you lack. Speak kindly to the people you love. And pay attention to the way you speak to yourself.

You Are Not Every Thought You Have

A thought can arrive without deserving your agreement. When your mind starts spiraling into fear, bitterness or defeat, interrupt it.

Pray. Take a walk. Look at the sky. Remember something beautiful. Call someone wise. Return your attention to what is true and good.

Faith does not require denying pain or difficult circumstances. It gives us somewhere to stand while we walk through them.

What Will Come Out of Your Mouth?

We cannot control every circumstance, every person or every thought that flashes through our minds. We can become more deliberate about what we nurture and what we speak.

Consuming Goodness means filling your life with more of what produces goodness - and then letting some of that goodness spill back out.

Speak goodness. Good in. Good out.

Love yourself, as yourself. Gal. 5:14®