The Tongue

     Have you ever said something without thinking, and later on thought why did I do that. I hurt that person. Or maybe you were on the receiving line of that insult or thing that came out of someone’s mouth. Either way it can be very hurtful to the person on the receiving end. When I was a young girl in Sunday School we sang a song. One of the verses were, "Oh be careful little tongue what you say… Oh be careful little tongue what you say… For the father up above is looking down in love. Oh be careful little tongue what you say. I never realized exactly what that song was saying until I got older.


    Washington Irving once said, "A sharp tongue is the only edged tool that grows keener with constant use." He was right. The bible emphasizes on the tongue.

James 3:6
The tongue also is fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.

    One of the greatest threats to those around us and to ourselves is not any crime or violent act, but it is the tongue. I remember as a child the saying, "Sticks and Stones may break my bones but name will never hurt me. To me this saying is so far from the truth. Words kill. It kills someone’s spirit. It kills any confidence in a person. It will distroy them both mentally and spiritually. People may put on a big front, But in the end it will eat away at them in one way or another.

    Many times we scold children for talking about people behind their backs. Where do they get this from? Children learn by our actions. They do it because we do it. They also do it because the media does it all the time. It kind of makes me think of the saying, "Do as I say, not as I do" This is another saying I really do not like. Children are the carbon copies of ourselves. As they see it in us. They do it. God’s thought in this matter are pretty clear.

Proverbs 11:12
Whoever derides their neighbor has no sense, but the one who has understanding holds their tongue.

    I don’t know about you but this one is a hard pill to swallow. I was raised if you think it say it. So this was a very hard thing for me for a long time. God wants us to give everything over to him. He wants even our tongues. When we turn it all over to him. He will quench that fire with his Holy Spirit, he then is able to use our tongue for good. As we learn to complement and not condemn and we learn to encourage and not discourage. We become better people and it allows God to use us more.