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Speaker 1: Hey friends, it's Kelly from Life Audio. We just launched

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Speaker 1: something new. It's called The Good Word, our free weekly

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Speaker 1: newsletter built for people who want to go a little

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Speaker 1: deeper in their faith. Thank devotionals, guided prayers, curated podcasts, recommendations,

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Speaker 1: and a little community all in one place. No ads,

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Speaker 1: just good content. This one means a lot to us.

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Speaker 1: We built The Good Word based on the audience survey

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Speaker 1: so many of you filled out a few months back.

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Speaker 1: You told us what you wanted, and we listened. So

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Speaker 1: thank you truly for helping us shape this. Head to

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Speaker 1: the link in the show notes and join our community today.

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Speaker 1: We'd love to have you.

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Speaker 2: Life Audio. Thank you for listening to your Nightly Scripture,

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Speaker 2: a calming Scripture Center devotional podcast designed to help you

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Speaker 2: end each day with God's word in your mind and

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Speaker 2: on your heart. Right after this short word from our

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Speaker 2: sponsors will reflect on tonight's scripture Proverbs chapter seventeen. Tonight's

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Speaker 2: scripture reflection is written by Linette Kittle and read by

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Speaker 2: Carrie Eichberger. Proverbs chapter seventeen. Better a dry crust with

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Speaker 2: peace and quiet than a house full of feasting with strife.

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Speaker 2: A prudent servant will rule over a disgraceful sun, and

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Speaker 2: will share the inheritance as one of the family. The

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Speaker 2: crucible for silver and the furnace for gold. But the

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Speaker 2: Lord tests the heart. A wicked person listens to deceitful lips.

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Speaker 2: A liar pays attention to a destructive tongue. Whoever mocks

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Speaker 2: the poor shows contempt for their maker. Whoever gloats over

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Speaker 2: disaster will not go unpunished. Children's children are a crowned

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Speaker 2: the aged, and parents are the pride of their children.

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Speaker 2: Eloquent lips are unsuited to a godless fool, how much

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Speaker 2: worse lying lips to a ruler. A bribe is seen

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Speaker 2: as a charm by the one who gives it. They

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Speaker 2: think success will come at every turn. Whoever with foster

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Speaker 2: love covets over an offense, but whoever repeats the matter

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Speaker 2: separates close friends. A rebuke impresses a discerning person more

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Speaker 2: than a hundred lashes to a fool. Evildoers foster rebellion

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Speaker 2: against God. The messenger of death will be sent against them.

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Speaker 2: Better to meet a bear robbed of her cubs than

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Speaker 2: a fool bent on folly. Evil will never leave the

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Speaker 2: house of one who pays back evil for good. Starting

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Speaker 2: a quarrel is like breaching a damn, So drop the matter,

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Speaker 2: for a dispute breaks out, acquitting the guilty and condemning

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Speaker 2: the innocent. The lord detests them both. Why should fools

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Speaker 2: have money in hand to buy a wisdom when they

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Speaker 2: are not able to understand it. A friend loves at

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Speaker 2: all times, and a brother is born for a time

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Speaker 2: of adversity. One who has no sense shakes hands in

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Speaker 2: pledge and puts up security for a neighbor. Whoever loves

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Speaker 2: a quarrel loves sin. Whoever builds a high gate invites destruction.

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Speaker 2: One whose heart is corrupt does not prosper. One whose

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Speaker 2: tongue is perverse falls into trouble. To have a fool

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Speaker 2: for a child bring his grief, there is no joy

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Speaker 2: for the parent of a godless fool. A cheerful heart

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Speaker 2: is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.

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Speaker 2: The wicked accept bribes in secret to pervert the course

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Speaker 2: of justice. A discerning person keeps wisdom and being, but

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Speaker 2: a fool's eyes wander to the ends of the earth.

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Speaker 2: A foolish son brings grief to his father, and bitterness

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Speaker 2: to the mother who bore him. If imposing a fine

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Speaker 2: on the innocent is not good, surely to flog honest

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Speaker 2: officials is not right. The one who has knowledge uses

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Speaker 2: words with restraint, and whoever has understanding is even tempered.

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Speaker 2: Even fools are thought wise if they keep silent and discerning,

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Speaker 2: if they hold their tongues. In a day and age

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Speaker 2: where it seems like words are spewed out publicly by

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Speaker 2: the millions every second of the day, God calls us

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Speaker 2: to choose our words carefully, ones that give life rather

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Speaker 2: than ones that bring heartache, strife, and disaster. Choosing words

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Speaker 2: sometimes means too, as Proverbs seventeen reminds us, that we

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Speaker 2: don't say anything rather than reveal someone's sin and failings,

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Speaker 2: challenging many nowadays in an era of tell all books

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Speaker 2: and people racing to be the first to expose in

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Speaker 2: other's sin tragically without guidance, our tongues are capable of

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Speaker 2: spouting out words that bribe, lie, deceive, return evil for good, despise, rebel,

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Speaker 2: and more, coming out of a heart that is still learning. Yet,

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Speaker 2: as we grow in our spiritual maturity, we learn to

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Speaker 2: restrain our words and cultivate a calm spirit. Rather than

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Speaker 2: expel all we know in the moment, God leads us

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Speaker 2: to hold our tongue at times discerning his will and

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Speaker 2: situations where words may hurt more than heal. Instead, we

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Speaker 2: can choose to speak joyful words that lead to life,

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Speaker 2: restoring health to those around us, working like medicine to

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Speaker 2: bring relief to those who are wounded and half broken hearts. Still,

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Speaker 2: it doesn't mean that God sometimes won't speak through us

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Speaker 2: to help correct another, but when he does, he leads

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Speaker 2: us in wisdom and discernment. Mostly, God calls us to

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Speaker 2: encourage and uplift one another with words of life, his

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Speaker 2: words that come from his mouth and do not return void,

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Speaker 2: but accomplish His will in every situation. God helped me

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Speaker 2: today and every day to choose to speak and write

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Speaker 2: words that give life. While words around me are dark, oppressing,

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Speaker 2: and draining, they lead me to choose words that lead

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Speaker 2: others to You and the life you give to us.

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Speaker 2: Cause me to hesitate and reevaluate any words that try

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Speaker 2: to come out of my mouth or through my writing

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Speaker 2: that would mislead, wound, and drag others down. As David

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Speaker 2: asked to you so many years ago in Psalm one

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Speaker 2: for one verse three, Set a guard over my mouthboard,

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Speaker 2: keep watch over the door of my lips. Amen. How

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Speaker 2: did Tonight's scripture speak to you? Share your thoughts in

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Speaker 2: the Your Nightly Scripture Forum discussion. Thank you for listening

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Speaker 2: to Your Nightly Scripture. Tonight's scripture was read from the

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Speaker 2: New International Version by Biblica. All rights reserved. If Tonight's

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Speaker 2: episode blessed you, be sure to follow the show on

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Speaker 2: Apple Podcasts so your next Nightly Scripture is ready when

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Speaker 2: you are. Your Nightly Scripture is a production of Life

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Speaker 2: Audio and Salem Media. Thank you and we'll see you

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Speaker 2: tomorrow Night