Tounge

I get a mass email devotion once a week from Pastor Gretchen and this one she sent this week really hit home with me... She was talking about holding your tongue...

Taming the Tongue

James has a whole chapter devoted to this subject because he stresses the importance of it. I agree with James. It is so important to have a grip or hold on our tongues. "He that does not keep a tight reign on his tongue, his religion is worthless." No matter how many widows and orphans we visit and we keep ourselves separated from the world, if we do not keep a tight reign on our tongues we do no good. it is the same feel as when Paul told the Corinthians that they could speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but if they did not have love, they were just making a bunch of noise.

If your husband is in the ministry or called to be in any capacity I want to encourage you to especially watch what you say and watch how you say things. Timothy gives the qualifications of a leader and mentions the wife in his instructions in regard to her speech. We can disqualify our husbands by the way we conduct our tongues. Our husbands could be the most Godly man but if we are talking too much, talking about people, or being negative and complaining then we could disqualify him.

The book of Proverbs gives a tremendous amount of scriptures about your lips, your mouth, your tongue, a gossip, a talebearer, etc. One of my favorites that my oldest son has been quoting now for about 7 years is this, "Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing." Or how about, "Where there are many words, sin is not absent." I think we as ladies should be more aware of what or how much we say. We for sure want to be good confidantes. That is a friend that will listen and not repeat what they hear. Another thing to look for is how we say things. The sharpness or "matter of factness" of our tone can throw people off sometimes. Our speech should be gracious, tactful, and never intrusive. We want to be "inviting" to other women to be able to pour into their lives. The way we dress, talk, and act is all very important to how we are perceived. Sometimes one time is all that people will get a chance to meet you and it should be positive if at all possible, not hearing you rattle on about so and so and griping about this or bragging about that.

This is a huge issue ladies. It will affect our husbands, our children, and our friends, as well as strangers. The example for our children is so important too. They will become what you are. Your children are a direct fruit of you. "You can teach what you know, but you can only reproduce who you are." Ronald Reagan. So........................this is a sobering thought. I want to grasp what James said, "if you can tame the tongue then the whole body will be in check." This is a key to maturity. Other areas in our lives will come in line when we get the tongue under control. How many fires have we started? How many lives have we spoken life into? How many times have we dishonored our husbands with our words (and thoughts)? How many times have we crushed our children's spirits? How many times has our words been rivers of living water gushing forth out of our inmost being? These are all l good questions to ask ourselves. Let's do a little self examining today. Love you all and we all are working toward that maturity in Christ Jesus.
--Gretchen DeVries


This woman has a way of getting to me each and every time... I know that she is not talking directly to me cause I know everyone gets this email but I always get something whenever she opens her mouth or sets her fingers to type... So thank you Pastor Gretchen if you ever read this or not... Thank you for letting the father speak directly to me through you... I hope all that read this get something from it... Its a valuable lesson that EVERYONE needs to read... ;o) Let me encourage everyone to think before you speak its something I am battleing and know God is workin on me... ;o) Blessings <<>><