If you are as old as I am and a bit of a game show junkie, you probably remember that fun one from the 80s called “Press Your Luck.” Remember that? Contestants would answer questions and earn an opportunity to win cash or prizes by hitting a buzzer to freeze the game board. Whatever was lit up, they won. But if they hit a Whammy, which was like a little red devil, all of their earnings would go away. You wanted to do all you could to avoid a Whammy. The contestants would often say, as the squares on the board flashed around, “No whammy, no whammy” and then when they hit the buzzer, “STOP!”

Well, that game show is a lot like life in the fact that we want to do everything we can to avoid whammies. And here in today’s proverb, we don’t just have a whammy, but a double whammy. It says in Proverbs 10:18, “The one who conceals hatred has lying lips, and whoever utters slander is a fool.” You see, hatred can hit you with a double whammy. It can drive you to be a liar, and it can drive you to be a slanderer.

Have you ever hated somebody but was nice to their face? You shouldn’t hate anybody, but nevertheless, you weren’t being true. Your lips lied. You didn’t speak with integrity of heart. You added lying to your hatred and concealed your hatred. That’s a whammy.

But then there are other times, particularly behind their back, you don’t conceal your hatred. No, you vent your hatred, and often your hatred drives you to slander that person, to say false and hurtful things about them. That’s a whammy too.

So hatred, whether you conceal it and deceive people or vent it and slander people, it’s a double whammy. So, you should avoid hatred at all costs. In fact, Jesus said in Matthew 5, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven.” Beloved, don’t press your luck with hate. No whammy, no whammy, STOP!

Change begins in you!