The Tongue Is Fire Waiting To Erupt

"The tongue is a deadly arrow; It speaks deceit; With his mouth one speaks peace to his neighbor, But inwardly he sets an ambush for him" (Jer. 9:8).

Hey Gang:  We have been truly blessed for the past several weeks.  We were at a facility that did not have cable or national news.  Wow! That was invigorating.  My blood pressure went down, my depression level was reduced and I even looked forward to getting up in the morning.  But we know that all good things have to come to an end and they abruptly did.  But did you know the same issues were still holding the news media in bondage and taking air space as when we left.  Some might say things are really not getting worse or getting better for that - I choose to differ.

But let’s leave that issue lay for today and look at another problem that seems to be out of control and growing more every each day.  I happened to turn the sports news on to find out who was on first.  For more than half an hour the hosts spewed forth venom about this person or that.  After tiring of that I turned to another sports show only to find the format was much the same.   

So I gave up on the news media and got out one of my very favorite movies about two of my very favorite old time actors, John Wayne and Kathryn Hepburn.    Are there any Rooster Cogburn fans out there? 

Now Rooster had two very serious problems; one, he liked to take frequent nips on his jug, which loosened his tongue and secondly, he had Kathryn Hepburn, a missionary traveling with him as his conscience.  Once when he was unusually boisterous, she related the following ditty to him: "A wise old owl lived in an Oak; the more he saw the less he spoke:  the less spoke the more he heard, why can't we be like that wise old bird?"

There is an old Dutch adage that says the same think in a different way; "It is best to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to speak out and remove all doubt".

Jesus gave a stern warning when He said, "But I tell you that every careless word that people speak, they shall give an accounting for it in the Day of Judgment. For by your words you will be justified and by your works you will be condemned" (Matt. 12:36).

Paul in his letter to the Ephesians put it this way, "Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear"  (Eph. 4:29).

Solomon, the second wisest man to walk this earth wrote, "Words from the mouth of a wise man are gracious, while the lips of a fool consume him" (Ecc. 10:12).

S0000 my young friends, what words will you utter today?  Will they be words that bring honor and glory to your heavenly Father??  As the old hillbilly once said, "Choose your words wisely, for you may have to eat them."   Gee, I think I might have been that old Hillbilly!   Now hear this, Ya all have a good day

Blessings to you, written earlier from Bradenton, Florida.

Gramps