That's Going to Leave a Mark

Daily Reading: James 3-4

The tongue... is a restless evil, full of deadly poison (James 3.8)

Devotional Thought: Ouch!  When I read this, I think, "That's going to leave a mark!"

James said that the tongue “is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.”  It leaves a mark...

·       The tongue is restless, isn’t it?  How many times have you scolded yourself because your tongue kept wagging after you told yourself: “Bite your tongue!”?  We’ve all known people who just can’t seem to stop talking.  If there’s a silence in the room, they fill it with words.  And the words don’t have to make sense; they just need to make noise.  And that’s very "annoising," isn’t it?

·       Not only did James write that the tongue is restless, but he also wrote that it is a restless evil.  Words often go beyond empty and meaningless and become negative.  By focusing on things that don’t really matter, we use up energy on the insignificant.  Are your words helpful for building others up?  Or do they instead tend to tear them down?  When we say disparaging words about others – even if no one else hears them – it has an evil impact on us.  Speaking positively about someone, however, will improve your attitude about them.  You’ll see them differently.

·       James didn’t stop with restless evil, either.  He said the tongue is deadly!  There comes a point when words move from annoying and defeating, to deadly.  Words poison the well of love that knits families and friends together.  Words cut through a community of Christians, rendering them divided and useless.  Words ruin the reputation and effectiveness of leaders.  When we were children, we used to say, "Sticks and stones can break my bones, but words will never hurt me."  That’s simply not true.

Ouch!  Your tongue's going to leave a mark!

Prayer:  Lord Jesus, you said "By your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned" (Matthew 12.37).  In the words of James, help me to "bridle my whole body" by "putting a bit in my mouth."  Amen.

Psalm of the Day: Psalm 50.7-15

7 “Hear, O my people, and I will speak; O Israel, I will testify against you. I am God, your God.

8 Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you; your burnt offerings are continually before me.

9 I will not accept a bull from your house or goats from your folds.

10 For every beast of the forest is mine, the cattle on a thousand hills.

11 I know all the birds of the hills, and all that moves in the field is mine.

12 “If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the world and its fullness are mine.

13 Do I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats?

14 Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving, and perform your vows to the Most High,

15 and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me. ”