Sweet and Soft Words

This past Sunday I had the privilege of teaching form the beautiful book of Song of Solomon. In the teaching time I talked about 4 secrets to marital communication that God gives us through the communication in the first chapter of the book. Tonight I will highlight and discuss 2 of the secrets and tomorrow night I will highlight and discuss the other 2. 

Sweet words

Solomon's first secret in communication that he showcases in verse 15 of Chapter 1 is that our communication in marriage must be sweet. Solomon tells his bride she is beautiful twice and his darling or love. Then Solomon compares her to a dove for her purity, tenderness, and simplicity. Solomon is showing us here that sweet words of praise are important and a secret to communication in love. It has been said, a courtship begins with him telling her sweet nothings and the relationship ends when nothing sweet is said. Men, we have a responsibility to tell our wives sweet things about themselves. Wives, your husband might be rough around the edges, I know I am, but he still has a sweet spot. Wives point your husband’s sweet spot out to him and praise him for it. It is much easier to criticizes, call names, yell, get angry, and talk negatively to our spouses because well they are our spouses. But God is telling us that sweet words go a long way and sweet words of praise are a secret to communication in love. Are your words sweet or sour to your spouse?

Soft words

The second secret that Solomon shows us in verse 15 is that that not only do sweet words go a long way, so do words that are soft. Solomon compliments her like she is a dove and as we have already stated a dove is a tender soft animal. Solomon is not loud, harsh, or even bold in his words to his bride. Solomon is tender and soft with the ways he compliments and praises her. Solomon knows that a soft word will go a long way and will go much farther than a harsh mean word. We are not called to be mean and harsh to our spouses. A poem I read this past week said it like this;

“To keep your marriage with love in the love cup, Whenever your wrong admit it and whenever your right, shut up.”

This is telling us the same thing as Solomon. We need to praise our spouses with soft words and not beraid them or be prideful in them or boast in our words to our spouse. Soft words build up character and love while harsh words destroy and tear down a person. The old saying is wrong, stick and stone do break bones but words have much more power. Are your words to your spouse soft and tender like a dove? Do your words build up character and strengthen your marriage or do they destroy and tear down the marriage. Do you respond in anger and venom or do your words that are soft build up them?