Words



                As I hit “send” I noticed a small box in the lower corner of my phone informing me I had two seconds to cancel. I was being given a brief window of opportunity to consider what I said and make certain I wanted to say it. That little prompt inspired one of those moments where you purse your lips, sigh, and shake your head in understanding. It reminded me that words are powerful and should be used with great care. Once you’ve “hit send” you cannot retrieve your words. God’s Word speaks to this subject over and over.  Proverbs 21:23 says:
“Whoever keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps himself out of trouble”.
                How often our words get us into trouble!  How often do we say something and immediately regret what we’ve said? What disturbs me the most is when I question where ugly, hateful or hurtful words come from.  Matthew 15:18 (MSG) cuts me through and through.
                “But what comes out of the mouth gets its start in the heart. It’s from the heart that we vomit up evil arguments, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, lies, and cussing. That’s what pollutes”.
What a visual this passage creates! It makes me want to cry out as David did in Psalm 51:10
                 “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me”.
 
                The words that come out of our mouths come from our hearts.  It is our hearts that need changing. What we set our hearts on will rise up and come forth in our words.  As David said, our spirit needs renewal.  It isn’t a “one and done” type of process. Rather, it is an ongoing process. We must be intentional  as James 1:26 reminds us.
“If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person's religion is worthless”.

I love the image that the word “bridle” brings to mind. A bridle is a headgear used to control a horse. The bit and reigns are attached to the bridle. Essentially, we need to exercise control  over our words and “reign” in our tongues.  If we don’t do this, our religion is worthless. 

We don’t have a prompt that acts as a bridle that gives us a two second opportunity to reconsider our words.  My sweet friends, we have something far more amazing. We have unlimited access to God through Jesus. Through prayer, time in God’s Word, and time spent worshipping HIM we will find the renewal our hearts need each day.  It is a known fact that we are influenced by the company we keep. Don’t neglect spending time with the Lord. That’s where true transformation of the heart takes place.
                                                                May you be blessed!
                                                                Leslie

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