Loose Lips….

“O Lord, open my lips and my mouth shall show forth Your praise.” (Psalm 51:15)

Loose lips sink ships! Our mouths, if nor under the control of the Spirit of God, can destroy reputations, crumble relationships, and tear apart families; sinking the whole ship and everyone on board. The words don’t have to true, just uttered for someone within earshot to hear, and like wildfire, the rumors and stories spread. “Did you hear what happened?” “How could he have done that?” “I had no idea that she would be involved in such activity!” By the time the rumor mill and gossip column is finished, a person can be convicted, character destroyed, and reputation forever tarnished. What took hours or days to tear apart now will take years to restore…but for the grace of God!

How many times have we found ourselves arguing with our spouse in the church parking lot, only to walk into the sanctuary with a smile and “good morning” to all we greet? “How are you doing this wonderful day? Oh, I’m great! God is good!” What we should be saying is, “Wait a minute. I’m not doing so well. I have some apologizing to do to my wife and children before I even set foot in God’s house. If He is so good, than why have I just allowed Satan to use my tongue for such evil?”

“But no man can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our God and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the similitude of God. Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing.”
(James 3:8-12)

James admonished the reader to be Christ-like Monday through Saturday as well as on Sunday. He realized that our actions are as important as our faith…they go hand in hand. Paul did as well. Peter learned the lesson of speaking to quickly. Faith in Christ brings a transformation of the inner soul. We must learn to give over control of our thoughts, actions, even our words to honor God and our fellow man, made in His image. How can we possibly say we love God yet curse our neighbor, verbally abuse our spouse, or cut down our children with uncaring words? My pastor once said that the Lord gave us teeth to cage in the unruly animal within our mouths…the tongue! We definitely need to be slower to speak, listen more intently, take in the situation, and pray for the Holy Spirit to give us utterance and wisdom in our speech! Loose lips sink ships. Who is the captain of your ship?