The Tongue

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DAILY DEVOTIONAL SATURDAY APRIL 27, 2002
(James Chapter 3)

Dear brothers, don't be too eager to tell others their faults, for we all make many mistakes; and when we teachers of religion, who should know better, do wrong, our punishment will be greater than it would be for others.

If anyone can control his tongue, it proves that he has perfect control over himself in every other way. We can make a large horse turn around and go wherever we want by means of a small bit in his mouth. And a tiny rudder makes a huge ship turn wherever the pilot wants it to go, even though the winds are strong.

So also the tongue is a small thing, but what enormous damage it can do. A great forest can be set on fire by one tiny spark. And the tongue is a flame of fire. It is full of wickedness, and poisons every part of the body. And the tongue is set on fire by hell itself, and can turn our whole lives into a blazing flame of destruction and disaster.

Men have trained, or can train, every kind of animal or bird that lives and every kind of reptile and fish, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is always ready to pour out its deadly poison. Sometimes it praises our heavenly Father, and sometimes it breaks out into curses against men who are made like God. And so blessing and cursing come pouring out of the same mouth. Dear brothers, surely this is not right! Does a spring of water bubble out first with fresh water and then with bitter water? Can you pick olives from a fig tree, or figs from a grape vine? No, and you can't draw fresh water from a salty pool.

If you are wise, live a life of steady goodness, so that only good deeds will pour forth. And if you don't brag about them, then you will be truly wise! And by all means don't brag about being wise and good if you are bitter and jealous and selfish; that is the worst sort of lie. For jealousy and selfishness are not God's kind of wisdom. Such things are earthly, unspiritual, inspired by the devil. For wherever there is jealousy or selfish ambition, there will be disorder and every other kind of evil.

But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure and full of quiet gentleness. Then it is peace-loving and courteous. It allows discussion and is willing to yield to others; it is full of mercy and good deeds. It is wholehearted and straightforward and sincere. And those who are peacemakers will plants seeds of peace and reap a harvest of goodness.

The tongue. Here is one that I could probably do a month's worth of Devotionals around. You can read the entire 3rd chapter of the Book of James in less than 5 minutes. Please, take that 5 minutes today and do it. It is amazing how living a successful Christian life really boils down to a few things. The foundation of course is our daily relationship with Christ. It ALL starts there. Sin is a manifestation of what is in our hearts. You don't commit the act of adultery until it starts in your heart, moves to your head, and finally is performed by your body. Having your heart right is the key to how you live your life and the actions you perform day in and day out.

Even though we are talking today about our tongue, that organ that we use to speak with, the things we say start in our heart, move to our head, and are manifested in our conversation. We can never talk about taming our tongue until we talk about taming our heart. We can never talk about the things we say until we talk about the genesis of those words. As long as I have breath and you read these Devotionals, I will implore you to realize that the key to having a pure heart is having a daily relationship with Christ. An intimate, vibrant, real relationship, from which our heart and life are guided by.

Understanding that what we say is born in our heart, then our thoughts, let me encourage you today to understand the power of the things you say to other people. We can accomplish so much with our conversation, while we can also destroy so much. I believe it is critical to use our conversation to build people up. There is so much negativity in the world today. We should always take the opportunity when speaking to people to lift them up, to be an encouragement to them.

I also believe that we have to use conversation to be honest with people. Most counseling situations I am in are as a result of lack of communication. For whatever reason, we don't say what we should, we aren't clear about our feelings, we don't express our thoughts enough, and the lack of communication over a period of time festers into major conflicts.

I am a firm believer of being up front and honest. Even if it is uncomfortable and painful, it is better to get it out in the open and deal with a problem before it becomes even a larger problem. Of course, our conversation is also the gift the Lord has given us to tell others about Him. I have talked the last few days about witnessing. While we witness through how we live our life, we also witness by communicating the hope we have in Christ. The easiest and most effective way is to simply tell others what Jesus has done in our life. You don't need to be a Bible scholar to tell people how He has impacted your life.

I love you, I care for you, I pray for you daily. My encouragement for you today is to take inventory of your conversation. Be aware of the things you say, how you say it, and the impact it has on others. Sometimes you have situations where you just have to sit down and have a serious conversation. You can always use God's gift of communication to build someone up, to encourage them. NEVER miss that opportunity.

People need someone to lift them up, to encourage them along the way. It can make all the difference in their day. Be aware of the power of what you say. Be aware of what you say before you say it. Be aware that if you are not happy with the things that come out of your mouth, then you need to pray for the Lord to show you what is really in your heart. What you say is not an accident, it starts in your heart. Pray that prayer today... "create in me a clean heart Lord." God will always honor the prayer of His child to be like Him!

In His love and service,
Your friend and brother in Christ,
Bill Keller

If I can help you in any way you can contact me through my personal email at bkeller@liveprayer.com.

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