Verse of the day
James 1:19 - Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry.
I heard a pastor once say, "God gave us two ears and one mouth for a reason." And how true that is! We need to listen twice as much as we speak.
If we are not slow to speak, we may not control our tongue and blurt out the first thing that comes to your mind. How many have done that? I know I have - many times.
In fact, chances are, we end up saying something we'll regret later. The lack of self-control that comes with blurting out something often hurts others. Being slow to speak gives us time to get control of our minds so that we can speak with kindness, gentleness and purity.
There are two areas where I find it's most common to lose control of your mouth. The first is in a conversation within a small group. Sometimes conversations veer into ungodly territory. And the natural response is to contribute to the conversation.
But without pausing for a brief moment, we end up speaking about things that we would not normally talk about. We may end up gossiping, telling dirty jokes, using swear words - all things not of God.
The second area where your mouth can quickly get you into trouble is in a heated argument. Because emotions are running high, we tend to speak defensively. Ironically we want to protect our dignity and respect, so during a heated argument, we put others down with insults, slander or derogatory comments. These are not only disrespectful, but shows no dignity at all. This kind of talk is also not of God.
A quick note about anger. The dangers of anger go far beyond one's emotion. It can can lead to hatred, impure speech and a multitude of sins. We can murder in our minds with our anger. Living a life of anger does not show Jesus to anyone.
We cannot pass off our anger as something God knows about and will let happen. NO! We need to have self-control. Anger that leads to sin over and over and over again without repentance, but rather a cavalier attitude that says, "That's just me - I can't help it," has no place in the Kingdom of God.
As the Book of James states, let us control our mouths by listening more, think before we speak and get control of our anger.
Heavenly Father, Forgive me for not listening first, and saying things that are hurtful to others. Help me to be slow to become angry. May people see You through my speech and through my conduct.
In Jesus' name,
Amen.
