Watch Your Mouth Proverbs 4:24 The Message (MSG) 23-27 Keep vigilant watch over your heart; that’s where life starts. Don’t talk out of both sides of your mouth; avoid careless banter, white lies, and gossip. Keep your eyes straight ahead; ignore all sideshow distractions. Watch your step, and the road will stretch out smooth before you. Look neither right nor left; leave evil in the dust. I need Thee, O Lord, for a curb on my tongue; when I am tempted to making carping criticisms and cruel judgments, keep me from speaking barbed words that hurt, and in which I find perverted satisfaction. Keep me from unkind words and from unkind silences. Restrain my judgments. Make my criticisms kind, generous, and constructive. Make me sweet inside, that I may be gentle with other people, gentle in the things I say, kind in what I do. Create in me that warmth of mercy that shall enable others to find Thy strength for their weakness, Thy peace for their strife, Thy joy for their sorrow, Thy love for their hatred, Thy compassion for their weakness. In thine own strong name, I pray. Amen. Peter Marshall, Spiritual Portrait. How many times a day do we need to pray this prayer? Once? Twice? Per minute? It’s so easy to get caught up in the trap of judgment. It really is a matter of the heart, just like Solomon says. Our own shortcomings allow us to get off the path and wander too far away from the goal. That old tongue gets us in a lot of trouble. We are always saying things that we shouldn’t and often regretting it afterwards. One thing to remember is that your words have power. Words have the power to uplift, or to tear down; and it is your choice the words you use. You can use your tongue to conjure up negativity, or you can use your tongue to spread blessing to those around you. Let me encourage you to THINK before you speak. As yourself if what you are going to say is: T – Truthful H—Helpful I – Inspiring N – Necessary K – Kind At an evening social for army officers and their wives, the commanding general of the base had been given a special award and proceeded to drone on in a long speech of thanks. A lieutenant mumbled to the woman at his side, "Why they would award him a prize is beyond me. He’s nothing but a stupid old windbag." The woman turned to him, her jaw set, and said, "Lieutenant, do you know who I am?" "No, ma’am." "I am the wife of the man you just called ‘a stupid old windbag.’ " "I see," said the young lieutenant, "and do you know who I am?" "No, I don’t," said the general’s wife. "Good," said the lieutenant as he disappeared into the crowd. This young officer’s encounter turned out okay for him, but he wouldn’t have been in this circumstance if he had stopped to THINK before he spoke. Keep your eyes on the road, and watch your mouth. ©2013 Charles Mims, All Rights Reserved Feel free to Like, Comment, Share, Reblog
Posted on: Tue, 24 Sep 2013 00:55:49 +0000
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