“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me . . .” If only that were true. Have words ever hurt you? In my memory few things hurt worse than words. If our current election cycle has shown us anything, it is that words possess powerful potential to bring harm.
James knew the trouble the tongue could cause. He compares it to the bit which moves a horse, the rudder which directs a ship, a flame which sets the words on fire. What will we do with our untamed and poisonous tongues? Here is the rub: with the same tongue we bless our Lord and Father and then curse those who are made in his likeness. Blessing and cursing should not emanate from the same source.
What should we do about our tongues? Surrender them to the wisdom from above which is pure, peaceable, gentle, reasonable, merciful, fruitful and unhypocritical. Years ago a Christian songwriter put down these words: “Quiet please, too much has already been said. Let it be and learn to listen instead. Sometimes in the silence big problems become small. If we can’t find something good to say, say nothing at all.” Wise words for a tamed tongue!
