7 Questions to Ask Yourself Before You Speak Up

7 Questions to Ask Yourself Before You Speak Up

Posted on by Michele Morin

Several years ago, with one tentative toe dipping into middle age, I read life-changing words from the pen of Ruth Bell Graham, who confided she was finally learning that she did not need to weight in on every topic OR to speak up at every opportunity. This seemed reasonable to me at the time, a wise grid through which to steward my words, and I have consciously applied the rubric to social situations. (I’m sure the practice has been a blessing to both family and friends.)

However, recently, I’ve noticed some regret creeping in around the edges of my restraint. While I’m still an advocate for verbal discretion, I can think of at least two memorial services as well a couple of other gatherings where I felt strongly that I had something meaningful to share, but talked myself out of it:  too risky, too vulnerable, too “out there.”

Raise Your Voice: Why We Stay Silent and How to Speak Up by Kathy Khang is challenging me to look carefully at the way I use my words, lending the realization that even my choice to be silent communicates something. Apathy, insecurity, or laziness are not traits I want to “give voice” to, so I’m trusting for courage to lean into a gracious and yet more vocal role in the communities I inhabit.

Khang shares her own legacy of silence, struggling with her role as an immigrant from South Korea, feeling voiceless, learning to raise her voice “doing the good work of the good news,” while struggling with credibility and suffering from imposter syndrome. Challenges arising from her experience as a woman of color in a leadership role in para-church ministry drove her deeply into the Word of God for assurance from biblical role models like Esther and Moses. Beloved and known by our Creator, we are called, at times, to speak gritty truth to one another, not to hurt or tear down, but to bless and to influence for good.

Learning to Speak Up

Going forward, I am working on a reasoned approach to raising my voice based on seven questions Kathy Khang has posed:

  • Who Am I? What unique perspectives do I bring to the table as a white, middle-aged, long-time-married mother of sons with plenty of time in a pew? Who else is sitting around the same table with me? What can we learn from each other?
  • What is in My Wheelhouse? The downward draw of imposter syndrome has muzzled me more than once in situations where I probably had the most experience in the room, but was too intimidated to speak up–even though I saw the conversation going in a direction that looked ominous to me. The lesson here? Any combination of gifting and experience that God has graciously given comes with a responsibility to speak up.
  • Am I Willing to Fail or Be Judged? Quite honestly, his is huge for me, but most of the time, I am probably much safer than I imagine. Kathy points out that testing my voice is a matter of humility. I don’t need to “toughen up, become immune, or be unmoved by criticism or failure.” (59) I just need to be willing to learn from it.
  • What Are My Unique Gifts, Talents, and Skills? Good stewardship demands that I put myself in the way of risk to be available for God’s agenda.
  • Who Are My People? Who needs my encouragement? Whom has God already put within my circle of influence?
  • What Diverse Voices Am I Learning From? Reading, listening, paying attention to people whose faces and stories are radically different from my own has been life changing. Raise Your Voice sat in a pile beside my bed for months before I made the commitment to read it, because I knew the author would call me out of my comfort zone. A word to the wise:  sometimes the journey into discomfort is easier in community. If you’re looking for a challenge, The Red Couch Book Club is reading Kathy’s book this month.
  • How Do You Care for Yourself? Self care can be as simple as going to bed at a reasonable time, eating healthfully and mindfully, or saying no to unreasonable demands. If my voice is shrill from exhaustion or unreasonable because of poor preparation, the message God has given to me may not be conveyed in the best possible way.

Raise Your Voice!

There’s plenty of work in these seven questions to last me well into the new year, and I’m wondering if you also are feeling the tug to raise your voice in profound and courageous words. It can be a fearsome thing to be visible in the world by becoming uncomfortably audible. God invites us to inhabit our vulnerability by faith, a sinewy confidence in a sovereign God that trusts in His placement of our voices, cherishes His assignment of our customized message, and leaves the outcome in His powerful hands.

Many thanks to InterVarsity Press for providing a copy of this book to facilitate my review, which, of course, is offered freely and with honesty.

I  am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by sharing products and linking to Amazon.com. If you should decide to purchase Raise Your Voice: Why We Stay Silent and How to Speak Up simply click on the title here or within the text, and you’ll be taken directly to Amazon. If you decide to buy, I’ll make a small commission at no extra cost to you.

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Published by Michele Morin

Michele Morin is a Bible teacher, writer, reader, and gardener committed to the truth that women can become confident Christ-followers and students of God's Word. She has been married to an unreasonably patient husband for thirty-plus years, and together they have four sons, four daughters-in-love, and five adorable grandchildren. Michele loves hot tea and well-crafted sentences, poems that stop her in her tracks, and days at the ocean with the whole family. She laments biblical illiteracy and advocates for the prudent use of “little minutes.” She blogs at Living Our Days, and you can connect with her on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter.

86 thoughts on “7 Questions to Ask Yourself Before You Speak Up”

  1. Fine then! Just yesterday I wrote the words. I spoke up. Then, instead of uploading I sat on the words, thinking I needed to be sure. Sometimes, quite often actually, I choose not to speak, instead I write then tuck away. And then you post this.
    So, fine then, I did too. It’s scary.

    Liked by 3 people

  3. Michele, I think I may have the opposite problem as you: I think I am too quick to speak up. I need to remind myself that not everyone really needs my nuggets of wisdom all the time! Learning when to speak and when to be silent and listen is one of the hardest lessons for me. Thank you for sharing your wisdom. I will also check out the book club you linked to.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I am in the conflicted club on this, and I think that is why Kathy’s book was so helpful to me. There have been times when I’ve NOT spoken up and been very sorry after the fact about the lost opportunity, and I think that tally outweighs the number of times I’ve spoken up and been sorry . . . however, I do have that experience as well.
      It’s a tightrope walk, really, and one that we need plenty of Godly wisdom for.
      Actually, I’m glad you are going to check out the Red Couch. There’s a always a good book under discussion over there. You should join and participate, because you have so many good insights when you are reading.

      Like

  4. Michele,
    Thank you for your honest disclosure about how this book has challenged you. Isn’t God kind to lead us in a way that challenges us, yet draws us near in the process. I remember thinking I didn’t have much to share with young mom in our church because I did many things wrong. I had a friend challenge me that it was my mistakes that would help them the most, not my successes. I began saying yes to every opportunity God gave in sharing my heart with others. Mind you, it was when asked. That was huge for me. I will turn 60 this year and I am beyond grateful for the relationships I have built through mentoring younger women in our church.
    I also wonder how much social media has helped us become more reluctant to share our thoughts face to face. We can’t edit spoken words like we can a text or post.
    Loved this post.
    Blessings,
    Debi Walter

    Like

    1. Wow, I really think you are on to something with your thoughts on social media. In fact, just recently I was going to text someone, and my husband said, “You need to SAY that.” (He’s a keeper.)
      Thanks for sharing, too, your wisdom earned from throwing off shame and reluctance in order to become a much-needed voice among the younger women in your circle. I do the self-editing function all the time myself, and am also VERY conscious of the fact that my voice gets heard in a teaching role in my church, and I don’t want to “wear out my welcome.”
      As I said in my review, this book sat unread in a pile for several months, simply because I did not want to sort out the strands of my thinking on this issue that hits on so many hot buttons for me. But now I’m glad I did–particularly because of voices like your own that are meeting me here in the discomfort!

      Liked by 1 person

      1. I’m so glad you finally read that book! Look at the good God had stored up for you and for those of us who read your blog!
        It’s imperative we remember this, we not only have our own reluctance to speak up to deal with but also an enemy of the church and our souls who has tried to silence God’s Truth for millennia. I don’t want to be the one Jesus spoke of who buried the treasure he had been given.
        I’ll have to add this book to my pile by my bed. 😊 You have challenged me to consider that pile and ask myself if there is a hidden reason I have put off reading certain books. What a great start to my week! Thank you, Michele!

        Like

  5. What a topic, Michele! And a lifelong challenge to know when to speak up and when to stay silent. Since I retired, I have felt more freedom in my writing (though haven’t published much of it yet), weighing in on work related topics that could have gotten me in ‘trouble’ if I’d raised this voice while employed. That feels good! But in conversation it is such a balancing act. I try to sense when someone is itching for a fight and isn’t open to any other point of view, and remain on the sidelines. Unfortunately in today’s political climate these opportunities arise all too often! Relying on God for guidance is essential to serenity but may ruffle feathers when you know you need to speak up.

    Like

    1. Interesting that retirement has had such an impact on your writing! And I hardly ever weigh in on political matters, mostly because I feel uninformed–which is my own fault. One of my goals for this year is to get to election season without feeling as if I’m standing in the voting booth looking at a test I haven’t studied for!

      Liked by 1 person

  6. Oh, this sounds like a great voice! I think I err on the side of speaking up too much with my own thoughts. Instead, I’d like to keep it simple and keep it on Christ’s words when appropriate. I think I screwed up recently with the way I spoke up to a friend of mine:/

    Like

  7. I really like the seven questions to think through. As a person, I am good to speak up when I want but I know there are opportunities. There are times I should have or I shouldn’t have. How much to share and when to stop. I liked your post and it made me think about myself.

    Like

  9. Thanks so much for stopping by and for giving your opinion of my post about Blogging!! Great post!! Over the years, I have learned that i need to speak up for myself, my family and my friends!!
    hugs,
    Deb

    Like

  10. I’m sort of a split personality when it comes to speaking my truth. I tend to do so freely (trying very hard to do so with “grace”) with those in my day-to-day life. But when it comes to relationships where I feel less certain or accepted, I struggle to muster the courage, Michele. So this sounds like wise advice and another great book that you’ve found for us! I’ll be pinning and checking into it too!

    Like

    1. This is an incredibly helpful way of analyzing your situation, Beth. I think we do have a tendency to run roughshod over “our people,” and then to practice more restraint with our fringe relationships.
      I will confess to a certain amount of just plain laziness when it comes to people on the fringes. I really have to value a relationship if I am willing to stick my neck out or make waves.

      Like

  12. Why is our tongue so much trouble, whether we spoke out wrongly or didn’t when we should have? So many good points here, though. The one about humility is spot on. I guess that could be a good rudder.

    Like

  13. Interesting! Thanks for sharing those 7 questions to think about before speaking. It’s totally a tightrope act on knowing when to speak up and when to keep thoughts to one’s self.

    And you said it so well for those of us who teach that we should be: “VERY conscious of the fact that my voice gets heard in a teaching role in my church, and I don’t want to “wear out my welcome.”

    I don’t want people to think that I think I know it all! Because I sure don’t!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Yes, and I don’t want people thinking to themselves, “Her again?”
      Of course, there IS the thought, too, that I am still responsible to speak up when I become aware of something that needs saying. We need godly wisdom!!

      Liked by 1 person

  15. I’ve erred on both sides – speaking when I should not have or in a less considerate way than I should have – or, more often, not speaking when I should have. These are good questions to try to maintain the best balance.

    Like

  16. Great review, my friend! When I was younger I was most often silent, believing that I had less knowledge on just about anything and everything. I tested the waters more in middle age, but still yielded fairly often even when someone else was spouting information I knew more about when it was clear they were wanting to play “expert” that day. Now I am often the older (if not oldest) in a conversation and in some circles that and their knowledge of my expertise as a clinical counselor, marriage and family therapist, and special education teacher may give me some credibility and make them want to hear what I may offer. In other settings I am beginning to be viewed as “older” and since wisdom is not always recognized as a quality to be desired, I sometimes say less. Every season and every group and individual is different. In the end I am reminding myself that I will need to give an account for what I say, but also what I fail to say.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Phew, that’s surely true. We are even accountable for our silence. And it saddens me when I hear women say that their words are discounted because of their age. This is surely a testimony to our present day foolishness.

      Liked by 2 people

  17. I have always felt like I needed to give an answer or response but as I’m getting older and growing in Christ, I am seeing more now that there is a time to speak and a time to refrain. Sounds like this book could help me better understand the inner conflict I feel at times when it comes to speaking or not speaking. Very well written review!

    Like

  19. I’m well into middle age and probably speak up too much, my inhibitions of my younger years got left behind somewhere, I could probably do with reinstating a few! #Twinklytuesday

    Like

    1. Well, maybe, but then there’s the fact that young people are looking for mentors and people who are willing to speak truth into their lives. I think we just need to be mindful of listening at least as much as we talk!

      Liked by 1 person

      1. I’ve been told God gave us two ears and one mouth, so we should listen twice as much as we talk. But that isn’t an excuse to not talk at all.
        I’m compelled to share the following with you all…
        I was at a retreat one summer when it was time to share what God had been saying to us in our quiet time. I was strongly urged by God to not share, to stay silent. Being a talker, this was obviously God and hard—to say the least!
        As I listened to all the ladies share, I couldn’t understand why God didn’t want me to speak up!
        At the very last moment the quietest woman in the group sheepishly began to speak. What she shared was exactly what I would have said! Had I spoken up, she most likely wouldn’t have. It wasn’t that God didn’t want me to speak, it was He was caring for her and teaching me a valuable lesson at the same time! It wasn’t about me at all!!! Imagine that!
        Blessings,
        Debi

        Liked by 1 person

      2. OH, this is perfect! One of the ways we steward our words is by asking ourselves, “Is there anyone else who needs to be saying this or who could say it better?”
        There’s no way you could have known the answer to that question was “YES” and so God took care of it for you. Thank you for listening to that quiet voice, and also for sharing what it was like here!
        I have often said, sometimes the best part of a blog post is in the comments, and I think it applies today.

        Liked by 1 person

  20. Oh, Michele, this nailed me. I’ve been the one who is intimidated into silence. But you’re right. Our silence sometimes speaks much more loudly than any words could. And the reminder of how important self-care is in order to minister well to others, and to speak well . . . yeah, I might need to work more on that (says the girl getting over the worst cold in years).

    Thank you for challenging me to step out of my comfort zone and trust God more when it comes to using the voice He’s given me.

    Like

    1. So sorry to hear that you have been sick–and on top of all that’s going on in your world right now . . .
      Trusting that God will give you words of love and compassion for the people in your life who need them right now.

      Like

  22. Thanks for sharing. At first I misread it and thought it said, when “not” to speak up. But indeed there are times when it is important to speak up. This looks like a helpful read, especially for those who tend to stay quiet.

    Like

  24. Michele, those questions are really, really good. I need to take a screenshot! Or read the book. While Ruth Bell Graham made a wise point, one I need to learn, it IS important to ask God if we should speak up or stay quiet! 🙂 I’m sometimes not sure myself!

    Liked by 1 person

  25. Having been more awkward and shy as a young person, I always held back my thoughts. Growing up grows you and added to that–children. But there are times I put my foot in my mouth, speaking first and thinking later.
    On another thought, I can’t get your like button to work anymore. I have had this trouble with other blogs also.

    Like

    1. I think we all tend to have regrets in both directions. And I confess to a certain amount of laziness when it comes to speaking into people’s lives–even when I see things that I could help them with.
      As for the pesky like button . . . I’m afraid I don’t have any answers. It’s likely a WordPress glitch.

      Liked by 1 person

  26. This sounds like an interesting read. You make a good point at the beginning of the article about how remaining silent sometimes says quite a lot. We had an issue in our school district that made the new (and not in a good way) and initially the school was very much keeping quiet on the issue. Drove of angry parents came out to the school board meeting and one of the points that was made was that by remaining so silent on the issue, the school was speaking volumes and the message that was being sent out wasn’t the message they would want to send. The board issued a formal statement to everyone in the district the next day.
    x, Julie | thismainlinelife.com

    Like

    1. One lesson I learned from my working life was that it’s almost impossible to over-communicate, and if you’re going to err in a direction, you really don’t want to appear as if you are withholding information. That situation with your local school system sounds very unfortunate, but it’s a good example of how NOT to handle a controversy.

      Like

  27. Seven good, very important questions for everyone to ask themselves. There is a time to speak and a time to remain silent and it’s not always easy to know the difference. Stepping out can be intimidating but if we don’t speak up/out at the proper time we could become a part of the problem. God needs us to speak up when we should and stand firm on HIS word. These questions seem like good questions to ask HIM so that we can come to know what to speak, when to speak and when not to speak and so when we do speak it is in love. Show us, LORD, who we are in YOU and help us to be YOUR voice to the world around us.

    Liked by 1 person

  28. I am thinking the seven questions are ones we should all be asking ourselves. And the self-reflection would take me quite a long time. You review such thought-provoking books and ones that I want to immediately pick up and read. However, there are just too many books to read! 🙂

    Like

  30. Oh, such a lesson to be learned. And apparently (for me) one I need to learn over and over again. Finding the balance between speaking up and being quiet is hard. I find it’s all about obedience (which often feels awkward or uncomfortable on both sides of this equation). I’m learning, though. I’m learning. Hopefully I’ll get it before I get to heaven!

    Like

  31. Timely post for me to read this morning. I’m having a conversation today that I’m a little nervous about. I felt led to have it and the last line is what I need to count on. Allowing Him to lead me in my words and leaving the outcome up to Him.

    Like

  32. This looks like another great book, Michele. It’s so interesting to read the comments and see how each of us struggles with different facets of this. When I read the seven questions, I can’t help but think of my girls. My focus these days is making sure my daughters each have a voice that they aren’t afraid to use, but also that they know the value of keeping silent when necessary.

    Like

  33. Wow. This sounds like a wonderful book. I’m currently reading Resist and Persist, and it’s really convicting me on my silence. This post convicts me on my fear–I probably have far less to fear about speaking out than I think I do.

    Like

  34. This looks like such an amazing book. Learning to speak up in those various situations and raising our voice is such a needed message. God created our voice to speak of Him…to tell our story and display His glory. I want to use my skills, keep my circle of influence in mind, be willing to take a risk, even fail, and care for myself. Thanks for the review!

    Like

  35. Michele, I haven’t read Kathy’s book, but this post makes me want to! I love the way you summarized the advice–this really resonates with me. You are SO well-read; you inspire me!

    Thanks so much for joining the Grace at Home party at Imparting Grace. I’m featuring you this week!

    Like

  36. Michelle, you have written this well, at this time and because of social media, it seems to many weigh in like words falling out of ones mouth before thinking what they are saying or how what they say affects the reader. And with that said, social media has given many a voice and with practice, can help in real life.
    Thank you for sharing on #omhgff
    Hope to see you again this week!
    Have a great weekend!

    Like

    1. Great point, Karren. The anonymity of social media has led to a lot of words being thrown around like stones, for the purpose of wounding and keeping the battle going. May we be faithful in our use of words to bring peace and hope on all our platforms.
      Blessings to you!

      Like

  38. Whew! I need to spend a good bit of time thinking through these questions! They are already convicting me just on a first read! Thanks for sharing this at Booknificent Thursday at Mommynificent.com!
    Tina

    Like

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