The Reckless Tongue

 

“The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.”

—James 3:6

“Why did I say that? Ugh! Not only did I embarrass myself, but may have hurt the other person with my ill-thought-through statement.”

How easily our words can trip us up, can hurt others, and belie our witness for Christ. Such tiny mistakes sometimes create such a world of trouble.

Our enemy, Satan, waits to set up a conversation wherein we easily fall for temptation to cut down someone else, or share a secret we know, or use words that ought not come from the lips of a child of the King. How easy we fall into the trap and how difficult we find it to apologize!

My poet friend, Clara, penned these words that sums up my thoughts well:

My tongue was a reckless car today
That didn’t recognize or respect the stop signs.
It ran down two people
Without thought or compunction.
It crushed a sister and bruised a brother.
So dangerously exceeding all speed limits,
It careened over the highways
Without control or fear of consequence,
Halted only by the Word of God. ¹

If we know that the temptation to speak evil comes careening through our brain and onto our lips, we need to display a healthy amount of self-control, and the foresight before we begin a day, start a conversation, or make a phone call. We need to say the words written by the Psalmist David found in Psalm 141:3:

Set a guard over my mouth, O Lord, keep watch over the door of my lips.

Let us covenant with God to do our part and to rely on Him to keep us from the hurt a runaway tongue can inflict on others!

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1 Ruffin, Clara V. He’s Prepared My Heart for Harvest. Hartford, CT: Food for Thought, 1998.

 

 

Commands With Blessings in Their Mouthsby Thomas Watson (c. 1620-1686)

 

“Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice.”

—1 Samuel 15:22

“It is not enough just to hear God’s voice, but we must obey it. Obedience is part of the honour we owe God. It is the beauty of a Christian, makes us precious to God, and makes us one of his favourites (Exodus 19:5). What are the ingredients in our obedience that will make it acceptable?

1. It must be performed freely and cheerfully, or it is penance, not sacrifice. Hypocrites obey God grudgingly, and against their will. Cain brought his sacrifice, but not his heart. [Genesis+4:1-5] Cheerfulness shows that there is love in the duty.
   
   
2. Obedience should be devout and fervent—not as a snail in a dull, slothful manner. As water boils over, so the heart must boil over with hot affections in the service of God. Obedience without fervency is like a sacrifice without fire. Elijah’s prayer brought fire from heaven because it carried fire up to heaven. [2 Kings 1:10]
   
   
3. We must obey all of God’s commands. Hypocrites will obey God in the things which require little effort, and that raise their reputation, but leave other things undone. Herod would listen to John the Baptist, but would not leave his incest. [Mark 6:17-19]
   
   
4. Obedience must be sincere. We must aim at God’s glory in it. The object of our obedience is not just to stop the mouth of conscience, or to gain applause, but that we might grow more like God.
   
   
5. Obedience must be constant. True obedience is like the fire on the altar which was always kept burning. A hypocrite’s obedience is but for a season; it is like whitewash, which is soon washed off. God’s commands are not grievous, and he commands nothing unreasonable. [1 John 5:3]
   
   

“To obey God is not so much our duty as our privilege. His commands carry blessings in their mouth. There is love in every command, as if a king bid one of his subjects to dig in a gold mine, and then keep the gold for himself.” ¹

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1 From “The Ten Commandments,” by Thomas Watson, as quoted in Rushing, Richard, editor. Voices from the Past. Carlisle, PA: The Banner of Truth Trust, 2009. p. 220.

 

 

Gifts to Give

 

“Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.”

—1 Peter 4:10

Benny Jermaine came to my school as a kindergartener. He lived with a foster family in town. This winsome little boy, along with his class of five-year-olds, visited an apple orchard in the fall. The children were given permission to fill their backpacks full of apples. I’ll never forget that day when they all walked out the front door during my bus-duty time, bent over, moaning under the weight of their heavy burdens!

But, Benny didn’t appear “burdened” at all. Instead, with a smile and open pride, he offered his apples to any adult he saw as he walked the long hallway to the front door.

Carrie Lindmore made herself quite a reputation as a third grade trouble maker in the same school. She, too, lived with a foster family, who found her behaviors quite a burden. Carrie spent many hours in the school office!

I watched her one day as a teacher, who had learned of her birthday, bought cupcakes for her to give to her class. She literally skipped down the hall with “Thank you! Thank-you!” and found her fellow classmates in the cafeteria and yelled out, “Guess what! We are going to have a party!” She couldn’t wait to give away her cupcakes to those who knew her rather one-sided reputation.

In ordinary circumstances, both of these children never had enough of this world’s goods that they could freely give to others. Once they received a gift, they used those gifts to make others happy.

I think God wants His children, upon whom He lavishes His great favor and His abundant grace, to give away the gifts He gives us. Of course, these gifts could include material goods, hospitality, or any manner of other blessings. However, God has given each of His children at least one spiritual gift—and, sometimes, several spiritual gifts. He has told us the purpose for which He gives these gifts. And, He expects us to give them away.

Now, some Christians may feel their obligation to offer service to others, but find no joy in it. This cannot please our Heavenly Father. Although the passage speaks about financial gifts, I believe 2 Corinthians 9:7 can likewise refer to any gifts, including spiritual ones when the Apostle Paul says:

God loves a cheerful giver.

Likewise, in Titus 2:14 we read that we are a:

…people that are His very own, eager to do what is good.

Also, when speaking of spiritual gifts, Paul, in Romans 12:11 exhorts believers to:

…never be lacking in zeal, but to keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.

God has never given His people gifts for us to hold onto them, to clutch those gifts close to themselves, to enjoy the gifts, but keep them from others. He graciously and lavishly gives us His gifts, so that we might open our heavy backpacks and offer His grace in all its forms to anyone we meet along the “hallway” of our lives.

Thank God, and enjoy the gift-giving!

______________________

Please note: The names of the two children mentioned in this blog post have been changed to protect the identity of the real people involved.

 

 

God, the Mosaic Artist

 

“Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations.”

—1 Peter 1:6 AKJV (emphasis added)

“As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.”

—1 Peter 4:10 AKJV (emphasis added)

“O Lord, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches.”

—Psalm 104:24 AKJV (emphasis added)

Someone once told me that the word “manifold” in the Bible means “many-colored.” Having never studied Hebrew or Greek, I can only take his word for it. But, it has often made me consider the beautiful way in which God artfully uses His grace to meet the various—or manifold—needs and trials of His people.

Like an artist who chooses exquisite tiny tiles that He can see as He works, He can also envision the full masterpiece and how all those tiles fit together. He chooses the crystalline white stones that glint and shine with the light. He chooses the colorful clays that catch the eye and make us happy: bright turquoise, the brilliant reds, the sparkling purples and rich greens. He also chooses the inky black tiles that set the colors off and lend variety and luxuriant contrast to the whole picture.

He sees the objects created by these various tiles in the picture that we never see, although we may get a hint of them in our lifetimes. But certainly, He envisions the total picture we have no eyesight for, and plans a masterpiece made from the pieces of our lives—manifold graces for the manifold trials. As 1 Corinthians 13:12 tells us:

Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

God will sometime allow us to see the intricate work of His loving hands that made something beautiful of our confusing and seemingly helter-skelter experiences of this life. I can’t wait to see the many mosaics of Heaven. Each of us will see the artwork He is creating now, and adore the Artist in the most magnificent gallery ever!

 

 

Going Nowhere Fast?

 

“Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him.”

—Psalm 37:7

Do you sometimes feel like God has you riding a stationary bike? You know—one of those exercise bicycles that sits in the corner of a room and you pedal so many minutes to give yourself a workout?

God places all of us, who He intends to make fit for His service, on a regimen of spiritual exercise. He does so without new sights and sounds, away from the trails we would rather ride, and stuck in a seeming waste of time staring at a wall.

I have often wondered how the Israelites felt. They spend the better part of their lives as slaves in Egypt and now were set free to travel back to their homeland. They anxiously waited to see this promised place—a land “flowing with milk and honey” they had heard of all their lives.

But, instead of taking them directly and quickly to their final destination, God assigned them to a regimen of spiritual, mental, and physical exercise that consisted of waiting to move ahead. In addition, spies that scouted out the land of Palestine, came back, and scared them with stories of possible enemies they had never imagined.

This regimen is recorded in Numbers 9:17-23:

Whenever the cloud lifted from above the tent, the Israelites set out; wherever the cloud settled, the Israelites encamped. At the Lord’s command the Israelites set out, and at his command they encamped. As long as the cloud stayed over the tabernacle, they remained in camp.

When the cloud remained over the tabernacle a long time, the Israelites obeyed the Lord’s order and did not set out.

Sometimes the cloud was over the tabernacle only a few days; at the Lord’s command they would encamp, and then at his command they would set out. Sometimes the cloud stayed only from evening till morning, and when it lifted in the morning, they set out. Whether by day or by night, whenever the cloud lifted, they set out. Whether the cloud stayed over the tabernacle for two days or a month or a year, the Israelites would remain in camp and not set out; but when it lifted, they would set out.

At the Lord’s command they encamped, and at the Lord’s command they set out. They obeyed the Lord’s order, in accordance with his command through Moses.

How frustrating they must have felt. Sometimes it appears they got stuck waiting for a year to move ahead. It must have felt like riding a stationary bike! Yet we know God was working His purposes out in their lives. He wanted to teach them, day-by-day, to trust in His goodness.

In so doing, He showed them wonders never before seen on earth. He taught them that He could protect them from starvation and thirst, from wild animals, from enemy nations. He even kept their clothes from wearing out! And, He did this for forty years. For forty years! (see Deuteronomy 8:4)

If you feel that you get up every day only to ride your very own “stationary bike,” do so thanking God He that has a perfect plan for your life. He has charted a course to move you ahead and to use you for His purposes.

In the meantime, He will surely provide you with the exercise in faith and trust that you will need. He wants to help you get rid of the spiritual flab that will hold you back from running the race before you with the ease of a seasoned spiritual athlete. So, keep trusting God and keep pedaling!

 

 

In Spite Of…

 

“Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.”

—Habakkuk 3:17-18 (emphasis added)

Faith is belief “in spite of”—the contradiction of sight and reason. In the Gallery of the Faithful recorded in Hebrews 11, we read of many courageous, Spirit-filled saints who lived out faith “in spite of.”

The old hymn reflects this sentiment:

Faith of our fathers, living still,
in spite of dungeon, fire and sword. ¹

Faith like this does not come to those who “dabble” in Christian belief. That is, those who call themselves “Christian,” but rarely work it out in powerful prayer or courageous action.

Instead, God calls those who will devote themselves to faithful discipleship to trust Him, and acknowledge His all-powerful hand, which He can use in response to His peoples’ faith.

Puritan writer, Thomas Manton says:

We give up the visible for invisible rewards. We do not look at the things that are seen, but unseen… Faith provides invisible supplies to endure visible dangers… Sense judges only the outside of God’s dispensations, but faith looks within the veil. ²

Even if everything for which we pray does not come to pass in exactly the way we hope, the truly faithful look for God’s hand and trust His ultimate wisdom in every situation.

Psalm 23:4 says:

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.

God still works miracles. We may see His power in miraculous reversals of circumstances and health. But, when we trust Him in those “in spite of” times, He gives miraculous grace to sustain us, to give us peace, courage, joy, and a grateful spirit. His grace allows us to see His hand above all the circumstances.

Hymn writer William Cowper wrote the following:

God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea
and rides upon the storm.

Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take;
The clouds ye so much dread
Are big with mercy and shall break
in blessings on your head.

Judge not the Lord by feeble sense
but trust Him for His grace;
Behind a frowning providence
He hides a smiling face.

His purposes will ripen fast,
unfolding every hour;
The bud may have a bitter taste,
but sweet will be the flower.

Blind unbelief is sure to err,
and scan His work in vain;
God is His own interpreter,
and He will make it plain. ³

God reserves His awesome power and grace for those who place their faith in Him, who pray, and, then, who leave the working out of all things to Him.

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1 Faber, Frederick. “Faith of Our Fathers!” Public Domain.

2 Manton, Thomas. In Richard Rushing (Ed.) Puritan Sermons in Voices from the Past. Carlisle, PA: The Banner of Truth Trust, 2009. p. 59.

3 Cowper, William. “God Moves in a Mysterious Way.” Public Domain.

 

 

Harrowing Predicaments

 

“We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.”

—2 Chronicles 20:12

On November 12, 2014, two window washers became trapped 68 floors up at One World Trade Center in New York City when their scaffolding came loose. We hear of such events because they rarely happen: a person’s parachute doesn’t open, a trapeze artist dies from a fall because he had no net beneath him, a bridge collapses plunging cars to the river below, etc.

We humans try to cover all eventualities, to make sure we are never caught without the help we need in any situation. We live in a country with regulations for every worst case scenario. We use seat belts in our vehicles, have smoke alarms in our homes, receive weather alerts, equip our boats with life preservers, fly on planes with all the technology available, all to keep people safe in an emergency.

Regardless of the lengths to which we go in order to avoid trouble, we can’t avoid it totally. We must deal with scary diseases, horrible accidents, injuries from war, and a host of other maladies outside our control. We need reminding of how many times in Scripture we read the words, “Do not fear” or “Be not afraid.” Nearly every Book in our Bibles has something to say about fear in the face of overwhelming odds.

We can’t get ourselves out of serious trouble any more than those window washers could. We must learn to trust in a God who has promised to care for us and who will show us goodness and mercy every day of our lives. This bare-knuckled kind of faith comes hard, and only through severe adversity. It tests our dependence on God, as well as His ability to help us.

In a book of Puritan devotional readings, I came upon this paragraph by Thomas Lye:

Faith is the antidote and healer of all diseases. It allows a believer to live in the midst of death. God has extraordinary means to bear us up when ordinary ones fail. He can turn poisons into antidotes, hindrances into furtherances, and destructions into deliverances. The ravens give Elijah food. A whale becomes Jonah’s ship, and pilot too. An Almighty God can work without means. God often brings his people into such a condition that they do not know what to do. He does this that they might know what he can do. God is with his people at all times, but he is most sweetly with them in the worst of times. ¹

God can speak peace to us in the midst of terrible circumstances. He can bring help from strange places. Quite often, those things we often fear never happen, or come in a different form than we expect so that we are able to bear them.

Hear God say, “Trust me in this. I love you,” and experience His peace that passes all understanding.

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1 Lye, Thomas. In Richard Rushing (Ed.) Puritan Sermons in Voices from the Past. Carlisle, PA: The Banner of Truth Trust, 2009. p. 185.