What would you say if I told each of you that within your homes dwells
a member that is a potential troublemaker? Would you believe me? Would
your heart be grieved? Would you pray and ask God for help in getting
control of the heart of the potential troublemaker? Would it bother you
to the point that you would remain on guard day and night so as to watch
out for the problems that the potential troublemaker would seek to stir
up within your home? WELL.....
There IS a potential troublemaker living at my house right now - and yours
as well! It is called the tongue and it's such a cute little member of
the family, isn't it ladies? :-P The tongue is so small in size and unsuspecting
in appearance, it hardly seems as if it were able to do anything wrong
at all! I mean, all the poor, helpless, little thing can really do is
push a little ice cream around on a cone, right? WRONG!
James 3:5 says, "Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great
things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth!"
Just as the ice cream is pushed around on the cone by the tongue, so also
do our tongues have the same effect upon people around us! Yes, it's possible
to move 100 pounds (more or less) of human flesh with our tongues, pushing
individuals in either the right direction or the wrong one...
Proverbs 15:1, "A soft answer turneth away wrath, but grievous words stir
up anger."
Stop and think about it, ladies.... Which direction does your tongue push
people in, away from wrath or towards it?? Don't be deceived by it's size
- there is much power in so little a member of your body!! It's capable
of more than you realize....
How do you think everyone at church would feel about you bringing a rattlesnake
to services on Sunday and letting it loose? Think they'd shriek with fright
while frantically pushing and shoving their way to the nearest exit? Consider
then verse 8 of James 3....
"But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly
poison."
Ladies, we actually do bring our own personal "rattlesnakes" with us to
church every week! We also allow our pet "rattlesnakes" to dwell within
our houses all week long, freely slithering up and down the halls of our
homes, lashing out and biting the precious members of our families, filling
their hearts with deadly poison, scattering them in various directions....
It's certainly a very threatening situation to realize the possibility
of danger dwells so closely to those we love, amen? The Bible says no
man can tame that tongue - without the assistance of God, that is! That
means no human member within your home has the power to subdue that "rattlesnake",
that slippery troublemaker described so perfectly as an unruly evil....
James 3:2, "For in many things we offend all. If any man offend not in
word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body."
I think we would all admit that it's very easy to stumble in our speech,
amen? And yet, the Bible says that the mature Christian is one who has
control of his tongue, thereby also gaining control of his whole body!
Have you ever been at fault with the words you've spoken, dear lady? Take
a moment to reflect... What are some of the ways that you personally sin
with your speech? Do your words feel to others as if they've been stabbed
with a sword or bitten by a snake? Are you cutting and critical? Are you
continuously complaining? Are you slanderous and gossiping? Are you manipulative
and seductive? Are you carelessly setting off fires of strife everywhere
you go with thoughtless comments that spark trouble? Are you hissing at
every decision your husband makes? Just what kind of deadly poison lies
within YOUR tongue?? Once you realize it's potential for evil, perhaps
then you'll keep your tongue in your mouth where it belongs so it can't
bring any harm to others!
James 3:6, "And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue
among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire
the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell."
By examining the tongue of the patient, physicians find out the diseases
of the body, and philosophers the diseases of the mind.... Take some time
to examine your tongue, won't you? You see, not only do our tongues have
the potential to do damage to others, they can cause us personal damage
as well! Could it be you are poisoning yourself with your own tongue??
Some of us have lashed out in an argument with an uncontrolled tongue
and found out that we have had to raise our own fists to protect ourselves
from the effects of our own words!! Yes, our little tongues end up forcing
the rest of our body to defend itself....
In the past, I was very guilty of this type of behavior and I have to
diligently guard my tongue so that it does not get out of control... I
would verbally vomit and lash out cutting insults to my husband, provoking
him to anger. At times I would receive a blow across the face from him
- the stinging effects of my own words affecting my whole body....and
my husband's! Sad to say, I was pushing our marriage in the wrong direction
with my sharp little tongue... On Sundays I would then go to church and
praise the Lord, doing exactly as James 3 verses 9-10 point out and God
says ought not be the case!
"Therewith bless we God, even the Father; and therewith curse we men,
which are made after the similitude of God. Out of the same mouth proceedeth
blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be."
For those of you who don't already know this, when I married my husband,
I was saved and he was not. As a Christian, I did not have control of
my tongue simply because the Lord did not have control of me!! I was guilty
of pushing my 230 pound unsaved husband away from the Lord with that little
member of my body, my pet "rattlesnake", so to speak. Many times I lashed
out at him and filled his heart and our marriage with deadly poison...
Not until the Lord first got control of my heart and then my tongue, did
my words reflect His control in my life! By God's grace and the power
of the Holy Spirit, my tongue became an instrument of righteousness in
our home, rather than a tool of the devil. Instead of pushing him away
from the Lord, my tongue now influenced my husband to go in a direction
that led him closer to the Lord, and eventually resulted in his salvation!
I can honestly say that if the Lord did not get control of this particular
area of my life we would not be married today!! Yes, that little member
would have been responsible for blowing apart our home like a stick of
dynamite! The tongue is a wild beast; once let loose it is difficult to
chain... Ladies, that potential troublemaker still lives at our house
today, but I have to yield my tongue to the Lord DAILY and choose my words
wisely and prayerfully, so that they are pleasing to God and healthy for
my family....
Proverbs 16:24, "Pleasant words are as an honeycomb, sweet to the soul,
and health to the bones."
So dear lady, do you have any speech habits you need to repent of so that
ALL your words are pleasing to the Lord? Do your family and friends, co-workers,
sisters in Christ etc. need to hear more pleasant words coming from your
mouth? It's interesting.... Our eyelids get heavy, our shoulders, our
arms and legs all regularly ache with fatigue, yet our tongues never seem
to weary, do they? Hence, we must tame them and train them...
James 3:11 & 12, "Doth a fountain send forth at the same place sweet water
and bitter?"
Unfortunately God's people are so inconsistent with their speech... We
bless, we curse. We speak sweetly, then we speak bitterly. How many sins
would be prevented, if we would always be consistent, amen? Is it possible
to tame our pet "rattlesnake"? What about the outward circumstances going
on around us that stir us to say things we ought not? Should they be the
excuse, the reason for the inconsistency of our words? Of course not...
Contrary to popular belief, to speak kindly all the time does not hurt
the tongue one bit! Ladies, don't keep a reserve of "bitter water" on
hand for certain situations, get rid of that which is impure, pour it
all down the drain! Sweet water is best for everyone, so keep it flowing....
James 3:14-17, "But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts,
glory not, and lie not against the truth. This wisdom descendeth not from
above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish. For where envying and strife
is, there is confusion and every evil work. But the wisdom that is from
above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated,
full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy."
If this describes the contents of your heart, then the devil can light
a fire of hatred within you and deliver words on your tongue straight
from hell! Such wisdom is NOT from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish.
However, if your heart is filled with the wisdom from above, which is
first pure, peaceable, gentle, easy to be intreated, merciful, good fruits,
without partiality and without hypocrisy, then God has control of it and
can deliver words on your tongue straight from Heaven! We all need a purifier
for the bitterness that dwells within us, amen? The Bible is that filter....
You see, the tongue is the ambassador of the heart, hence, it must be
kept clean.
So dear lady, what's going on in your heart today? Test the flow of your
words... Your speech will reveal the condition of your heart to you! Remember,
our outward circumstances aren't the problem, they can't be used as an
excuse for the deadly poison that spills forth from our tongues, our heart
is the key to proper speech! Let the Word of God purify your life AND
your lips....
Psalm 12:6-7, "The words of the Lord are pure words: as silver tried in
a furnace of earth, purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them, O Lord,
thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever."
In closing, remember that as Christians, we have the Lord living in our
hearts, therefore we have the potential to overcome the contrary forces
that strive to make us say things we ought not. We must yield control
of our hearts to the Lord Jesus Christ! Matthew 12:44 says, "...for out
of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh." Ladies, the power of
speech is one of the greatest powers God has given us! Edifying language
is a product of a sanctified heart... With the tongue, we can praise God,
pray, share the Word, lead the lost to Christ and encourage our friends
and family. What a privilege to move such mountains, amen? But with that
same little member we can also fill a person's heart with deadly poison
and be responsible for sending people in the wrong direction.... Which
would you rather to be guilty of?? IS there a little troublemaker running
loose at your house these days?? Let the Lord bring that member under
control!
God Bless,
Pam
Isaiah 60:1&2
Copyright 2000 Pamela A. Iannello
