The Taming of the Tongue

"A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger." Proverbs 15:1

What a wonderful nugget of wisdom for wives wanting to grow in godliness! We would improve our "serve", so to speak, by leaps and bounds if we could just keep this one proverb in the front of our minds and put it into practice!

I know that far too often, I let my tongue loose before I think, and my response to my Beloved is harsh. Many times I'm not even "responding" to him, but out of the circumstances I find myself in ~ I just take it out on him. It grieves my heart to think of the number of arguments I have started just because I didn't take the time to think and to give a "soft" answer. Sometimes my harsh answer doesn't actually start an argument, but it does stir up my Beloved's anger.

James tells us that, "no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison." (Jas. 3:8) The good news, sisters, is that we don't have to rely upon ourselves to tame our tongue! We have the enabling of the of the Holy Spirit to accomplish this overwhelming task.

God calls us to live in a deliberate way. To measure our steps; to count the cost. It's not easy. I find that most days I walk in a reactionary rather than deliberate way. Instead of thinking through my words and actions, I walk through my day "reacting" to the circumstances around me. Which in turn causes me to be contentious with those around me ~ whether it be my husband or my children.

I believe that as we rely on the Lord and strive toward godly living, we will see changes ~ in a formulaic way (as in: If I do A and B the result will be C), however often God does honor our efforts to honor and glorify Him. Whether or not our children improve in their behaviors or our husband becomes easier to live with, or a more godly leader is not what is important. What we will see is a change in us. As we live to glorify God, He will mold us further into the image of His dear Son. And that's truely what it's all about.