Taming our Tongues. Is it Possible?

Proverbs 10:19
Those who talk a lot are likely to sin.
But those who control their tongues are wise

Okay, let's be honest. How many of us talk a lot? Do we know anyone who talks a lot?
I once heard that women use more words than men and I believe it. I use more words when I am around adults because I am used to only using basic words, phrases and sentences that children under 7 can understand. SO when adults are around, my words definitely are not few.

Looking through God's Word, It is not hard to find examples that apply to this verse.

Ecclesiastes 5:1 Be careful what you say when you go to God's house. Go there to listen. Don't be like foolish people when you offer your sacrifice. They do what is wrong and don't even know it. 2 Don't be too quick to speak. Don't be in a hurry to say anything to God. He is in heaven. You are on earth. So use only a few words when you speak. 3 Dreams come to people when they worry a lot. When foolish people talk, they use too many words.
4 When you make a promise to God, don't wait too long to carry it out. He isn't pleased with foolish people. So do what you have promised. 5 It is better to make no promise at all than to make a promise and not keep it.
6 Don't let your mouth cause you to sin. Don't object to the temple messenger. Don't say, "My promise was a mistake." Why should God be angry with what you say? Why should he destroy what you have done? 7 Dreaming too much and talking too much are meaningless. So have respect for God.

Oh man, how much room do I have to write today? Simply put, I know I have made many promises to God, or come to him with all my thoughts, then wrapped up the conversation without listening to him. I have spent a lot of time talking it through and less time putting it into action. Sometimes I have walked away from a situation and thought, "if I wouldn't have said that", or "I sure talked a lot, I didn't even give that person a chance to talk." Today, maybe we can come to God and listen, choose to be a listener in a conversation, or use a "filter" before we talk. A filter is always nice. Ask yourself first, what do I want to say, how am I going to say it and will it be heard how I wanted it to be understood? If not, then maybe it just isn't the right time to say it.

James 3:1 1 My brothers and sisters, most of you shouldn't want to be teachers. You know that those of us who teach will be held more accountable.
2 All of us get tripped up in many ways. Suppose someone is never wrong in what he says. Then he is a perfect man. He is able to keep his whole body under control.
3 We put a bit in the mouth of a horse to make it obey us. We can control the whole animal with it. 4 And how about ships? They are very big. They are driven along by strong winds. But they are steered by a very small rudder. It makes them go where the captain wants to go.
5 In the same way, the tongue is a small part of the body. But it brags a lot. Think about how a small spark can set a big forest on fire.
6 The tongue also is a fire. The tongue is the most evil part of the body. It pollutes the whole person. It sets a person's whole way of life on fire. And the tongue is set on fire by hell.
7 People have controlled all kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and creatures of the sea. They still control them. 8 But no one can control the tongue. It is an evil thing that never rests. It is full of deadly poison.
9 With our tongues we praise our Lord and Father. With our tongues we call down curses on people. We do it even though they have been created to be like God. 10 Praise and cursing come out of the same mouth. My brothers and sisters, it shouldn't be that way.
11 Can fresh water and salt water flow out of the same spring? 12 My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives? Can a grapevine bear figs? Of course not. And a saltwater spring can't produce fresh water either.

Have there been times that your tongue has been a blessing to others? How many times has it been a curse? I don't think we can tame our tongues, but I know that we can certainly remind ourselves to have fewer words.

A few months ago I was stewing over a recent visit I had with a friend. There were so many things that I had observed that I thought were hindering her and her family as far as spiritual and relational growth was concerned. I was loosing sleep over what to say to her. This went on for days. Then, I decided I needed to go to God and give it to him because it was consuming me. I had worked out all the things I wanted to say and how I was going to say it a hundred times in my head, but I had never even stopped to consult God and pray for the situation.

A day later, this friend called me and began, one by one, to talk about the very things that I had on my heart and mind. And although she wasn't right where I had visioned in my head, God had intervened in the situation. She, on her own, called me (we don't talk a lot during the year, but always get together once or twice a year). She told me some things she was struggling with and some things she had begun to realize and that was enough.

Just think of what would have happened had I actually come to her. Well, I wish I could say that God acted in such a way that my friend became the perfect example of all the things I had thought up in my head, but he didn't. Instead, he is working on her one problem at a time, not something I would have been patient enough to do. He does that with all of us. We're not like a box of instant potatoes, we need time. So the next time you have something to say and it could change the course of your life or the life of others, give it a run through with God. Check out what he has to say or do in that situation.

Dear Lord, thank you for such a simple verse. Small, yet life changing. Although my controlling self does not like the answer to the question of whether or not we can tame our tongues, you have given me direction on what I can do to steer it the right way. I ask that you continue to speak through me as I was also reminded that I am responsible for everything I teach and I pray that I am doing it well, for you. Lord, I pray for those reading this today. I am sure there a some that are struggling with their tongues or the words that someone else has left on their hearts in the past. Speak to us today.

Please continue to pray for Diana B. this week.