Minister's Letter

May 2012

Happy Talk!

I love going to the theatre, and especially love ‘Musical Theatre’. It would be safe to say that my all-time favourite show has to be ‘Les Misérables’; I think I have seen it now around 10 times. And I could sing every part, almost word for word!!! It’s difficult to think of which song is my favourite, as they all conjure up so many different feelings: ‘Bring him home’, ‘Drink with me’, ‘One more day’ (it could be that one, especially when it’s sung as the finale with the whole cast).

And then of course, there’s ‘Miss Saigon’, another favourite. And again, there are a couple of songs in that show that invoke so many different emotions, whether it be, ‘Bui Doi’ (makes me cry every time), or ‘Last night of the world’, but then again, it could be ‘Why, God, Why’?

I just love musical theatre, so when some friends asked me if I wanted to go and see ‘South Pacific’ recently, I jumped at the chance. I knew some of the songs; ‘There is nothing like a dame’, ‘I’m gonna wash that man right out of my hair’, but there was one song which I have heard so many times before, but didn’t realise it was a show tune...

‘Happy talk, keep talking happy talk...’

And it got me thinking… how different the world would be if we all did a bit more ‘happy talk’.

The world is so full of sadness, bitterness, hatred, malice and anger. It seems that’s what makes the world go round. But what if we, us, here in Christchurch, in this community, decided to stand up against that, and did some more ‘happy talk’. How different the world could be!

What is ‘happy talk’? What does the Bible tell us about ‘happy talk’?

In the first letter to those in Thessalonica, Paul tells us to ‘encourage each other and build each other up’. The words we use, and the way we use those words, should be to build someone else up, to encourage them, to give them confidence and support. Our ‘happy talk’ should be honest, and our ‘happy talk’ should be to help someone else.

Ephesians 4:29 says, ‘Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them’. Can you imagine how different our world, our community would be, if there was no abusive or foul language? Can you begin to imagine how different life would be, if we spoke only words of encouragement? I would like to encourage all of us, to make sure, that when we are in conversation with others, that we use the language of ‘happy talk’, ensuring our conversations are pure, wise, holy and glorifying to God, our Saviour and Friend.

We are told in the book of Proverbs, chapter 15:1, ‘A gentle answer deflects anger, but harsh words make tempers flare’. Have you ever tried to argue in a whisper? I don’t think I have, but I imagine it’s quite hard, because when we shout and scream in an argument, we convey to the other person our hurt or dissatisfaction. For some reason, we start to believe that the louder we shout, the more likely the other person is of hearing what we have to say! However, I would have thought it is equally hard to argue with someone who insists on responding in a gentle way. Raising our voices, shouting someone else down, throwing harsh words is guaranteed to stir an angry response from someone. This is certainly not ‘happy talk’.

The Apostle Paul wrote a letter to his young protégé Timothy. In his first letter, he gave Timothy some instructions, and in the fourth chapter of that letter he said, ‘be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity’. Quite plainly and simply, Paul exhorted his young Pastor friend, the one he thought of as a son, to be an example to all believers in whatever he said.

So, this is what I believe the Bible is telling us about ‘happy talk’, so I want to encourage all of us, to strive to be ‘happy talkers’, to encourage one another, to build one another up, to use language which is glorifying to God, and to be an example to those around us.

Happy talking! With my love and best wishes,

Rhiannon

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