Psa 116:11 I said in my haste, All men are liars.

I said in my haste – The meaning of “haste” is “unnecessarily quick action; thoughtless, rash, or undue speed” (Dictionary.com). I’m sure we can recall some moments in our life we have uttered words in our haste. What happened afterwards? We regret! Yes, hasty words are spoken without due consideration, in a rash, at the spur of moment, often in anger, and only to regret later. O, how terrible we felt later when we have cooled down. What have we done? We have made a fool of ourselves. Hasty words are the result of an agitated state of mind; the mind is not sober. What caused the psalmist to make this hasty conclusion that all men are liars? He said before this: “I was greatly afflicted” (v.10b). That statement was said in the time of his affliction. Probably when he was in great affliction, there were some men who came to him who, instead of helping him, took advantage of him in his most vulnerable situation and cheated him, which increased his affliction. Any man under that circumstance will utter his frustration and conclude all men are alike. The bitter experience of the psalmist made this seems like a logical statement. But that would be a hasty conclusion! Hasty words are never good words. What does the Bible has to say about hasty words and actions? Proverbs 29:20  (KJV)  Seest thou a man that is hasty in his words? there is more hope of a fool than of him. Proverbs 14:29  (KJV)  He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding: but he that is hasty of spirit exalteth folly. Ecclesiastes 5:2  (KJV)  Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few. Solomon says there is more hope of a fool than one who is hasty in his words. How is it so? Solomon answers it in Proverbs 17:27, 28: “Whoever restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding. Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent.” Mark Twain said the same: “It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.” We made a fool of ourselves when we utter hasty words. We live to regret or made to “eat” our words later. We now look back realizing that had we simply used a little more time to analyze those words and look at the possible consequences our words would unleash, we would never have uttered them. Hindsight is always 20/20, which is how we learn in this life. How can we help ourselves from becoming a fool because of our words? One way is to count one to ten before saying them. Another way is to say nothing and walk away. Another way is to THINK. Yes, think before we talk: “Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath” (James 1:19). God gives us two ears and one mouth so that we can hear more and talk less. Remember this word THINK before we speak: T – Is it TRUE? H – Is it HELPFUL? I – Is it INSPIRING? N – Is it NECESSARY? K – Is it KIND? THINK before we speak; it will prevent hasty words. THINK about it!