Weaponizing Words... Misfired

“When there are many words, sin never stops, but a person who restrains his lips acts wisely.” — Proverbs 10:19

“Shooting yourself in the foot” is an old way of saying you harmed yourself—usually with your words. But today, the wound isn’t just personal—it’s communal. We live in a time when words are fired faster than facts. Claiming certainty without clarity is a form of self-inflicted harm. It erodes trust, inflames division, and cheapens grief.

The tongue is a fire... (and we all know this too well these days)

When tragedy strikes, the rush to be “right” often outruns the call to be true. In the hours following Charlie Kirk’s assassination, social media lit up with confident declarations: the shooter was “trans,” “leftist,” “radical.” None of it was verified. Much of it was wrong.

And now, with the truth emerging—that the alleged perpetrator was raised in a conservative, Christian household—those early claims hang in the air like smoke from a misfired weapon. Few have apologized. Fewer have reflected. But the damage is done.

James, the brother of Jesus, warned us:

“The tongue is a fire, a world of evil…”, a world of evil. Placed among the parts of our bodies, the tongue contaminates the whole body and sets

on fire the course of life and is itself set on fire by hell.”

When we shoot off our mouths, we echo that fire—igniting suspicion, scorching truth, and silencing compassion. We forget that the tongue, like a weapon, can wound far beyond its reach.

We should grieve rightly for a wife and children who have lost someone dear. We should name the sorrow without rushing to frame it. And we should admit, with sober honesty, that the life Mr. Kirk led embraced a vision where some deaths were deemed acceptable in defense of the Second Amendment. That belief deserves scrutiny— not as a partisan jab, but as a moral reckoning.

Authenticity begins with repentance. With admitting when we’re wrong. With learning from our misfires so we don’t repeat them.

In a world hungry for truth and healing, ^“my dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry,” (James 1:19) We have the means within our mouths to produce health, unity and care. Let’s do our part in cultivating this.