I did it again! I said more than I wanted and I said it in a way that hindered instead of helped. It never ceases to amaze me how many times I come back around to this intersection in life. It is a place I have been to many times. Do you ever do it? Have you ever had words come flying out of your mouth that you wish you could lasso from the minds of people? Most of us have, haven't we? James 3:5-9 is a famous chapter on speaking out of turn. In it he says that no man can tame the tongue. So if you haven't, you will. We'll save you a seat on the bench.
I know the road back. It starts with a gentle nudge from the Holy Spirit. Sometimes it is immediate; I know I’m out of line and it is easy to accept, correct and move forward. Other times though, I find myself resisting; the fight is on and I feel the war within that Paul speaks about in Romans 7.
In those times I typically try to justify myself. I think this usually stems from pride, sometimes ignorance and other times twisted desires. No matter what my problem is though the Spirit and Word of God have consistently worked together to root out the unrighteousness in my life (Heb 4:12). They reveal God’s best and when they do I have a choice. I have to choose where to stand: in his righteousness or my righteousmess.
Additional Verses
To fear the LORD is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech (Proverbs 8:13).
Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing (Romans 12:17).
For whoever would love life and see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from deceitful speech. He must turn from evil and do good; he must seek peace and pursue it (1 Peter 3:9-11).
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