Preface
Preface
WHAT makes someone write a book? Sometimes authors write because of expertise. Through education and experience they have gained a specialized knowledge and understanding of a particular topic. Their writing allows their readers to grow in the same area without undergoing all the training and experiences themselves.
An author may also write out of desperation. In his life there is a weakness or struggle that needs to be addressed. He examines, studies, meditates, and applies what he has learned to help himself grow. He then puts the fruit of his labors down on paper in the hope that others will benefit as he has.
I have not written this book out of expertise, but out of desperation. I have told many people during the writing process that I did not write this book, it wrote me!
When I was sixteen years old, I was rehearsing early one Saturday morning for a statewide speech competition. My mom heard me from her bedroom next door. She got up, came into the room and asked, “May I interrupt you for a moment?” I didn’t really mind because I was ready to take a break. Then she said something that was nothing short of prophetic. “Paul,” she said, “God has given you a special ability to communicate, but watch out, because it will also be your greatest struggle.” Those words ring much truer to me today than they did the morning she spoke them.
It is true that our greatest strengths are also our greatest weaknesses. This book has been penned out of weakness—my weakness. But it is weakness that has been tempered by the intervention of God’s amazing grace and the powerful insights of Scripture.
In the pages that follow, we will examine something that sets us off from the rest of creation, something we do repeatedly every day: we talk. This book, however, is different from most on the topic. It is not a discussion of the techniques and skills for effective communication. Rather, it is the story of the great battle for our hearts that is the reason for our struggle with words. Yet there is more here than just an examination of the battle. We will also get a grasp of God’s plan for our talk and celebrate his enabling grace.
Thank you to all the people whose words God has used to change my heart. May God change yours as well, through the pages of this book. Thanks also to Sue Lutz, whose skill with words has made this a better book.