When I was growing up, I was taught to say, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” I now believe that is one of the greatest lies many of us were taught. Bones break, yes. But with time, they mend. In fact, orthopedic specialists will tell you that the site of a healed fracture can become stronger than it was before. But words? Words can wound in places no X-ray can capture. And some of those wounds can last a lifetime. Words spoken can never be

Some lines in Scripture show up so often they start to feel like background music. By that I mean they’re so familiar that we don’t always hear them anymore. And yet, every now and then, a familiar line catches you in the ribs and won’t let go. That’s what happened to me this week. I was reading a few excerpts from a book published posthumously by Rev. Dr. Walter Brueggemann entitled God of All Promises: A Poetic Pilgrimage through Genesis . As I read, one particular passage