James 3:7-8 All kinds of animals birds, reptiles and creatures of the sea are being tamed and have been tamed by man, but no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.
I have been prompted several times to use this verse and am finally doing so today. I will fully admit that my tongue is something I ask God to work on continually. When I think of taming the tongue, my mind is drawn to swearing because that is my personal struggle. I realize that taming the tongue can be related to lots of things: gossip, rudeness, temper, deceit, slander, biting comments and so on. Unfortunately, what comes from our mouths is an outpouring of our hearts, which is convicting. So what have I learned? When I ask God to remove swear words from my vocabulary, what I really need to look at is much deeper than the swear words. What causes me to swear? I know that for me it is ridiculous things such as road rage or frustration that has built up for a day or an entire week. I have asked God to change my heart so that these things do not get to me in such a way as to cause anger and swearing. I can actually see a change in my reactions. God is at work and He is changing my heart so that anger and frustration are rarely a part of my responses to situations. Therefore the manifestation of my anger through swearing has also been lessened. Praise God for His work in my heart change! Oh, I still screw up now and again, but the screw ups are coming less and less as I continue to hand over my heart to God. What is your tongue telling you about a deeper change that God is looking to make in your life?
I have been prompted several times to use this verse and am finally doing so today. I will fully admit that my tongue is something I ask God to work on continually. When I think of taming the tongue, my mind is drawn to swearing because that is my personal struggle. I realize that taming the tongue can be related to lots of things: gossip, rudeness, temper, deceit, slander, biting comments and so on. Unfortunately, what comes from our mouths is an outpouring of our hearts, which is convicting. So what have I learned? When I ask God to remove swear words from my vocabulary, what I really need to look at is much deeper than the swear words. What causes me to swear? I know that for me it is ridiculous things such as road rage or frustration that has built up for a day or an entire week. I have asked God to change my heart so that these things do not get to me in such a way as to cause anger and swearing. I can actually see a change in my reactions. God is at work and He is changing my heart so that anger and frustration are rarely a part of my responses to situations. Therefore the manifestation of my anger through swearing has also been lessened. Praise God for His work in my heart change! Oh, I still screw up now and again, but the screw ups are coming less and less as I continue to hand over my heart to God. What is your tongue telling you about a deeper change that God is looking to make in your life?
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