People can tame all kinds of animals, birds, reptiles, and fish, but no one can tame the tongue. It is restless and evil, full of deadly poison. Sometimes it praises our Lord and Father, and sometimes it curses those who have been made in the image of God. And so blessing and cursing come pouring out of the same mouth. Surely, my brothers and sisters, this is not right! Does a spring of water bubble out with both fresh water and bitter water? Does a fig tree produce olives, or a grapevine produce figs? No, and you can't draw fresh water from a salty spring. James 3:7-12
Meditate.
Consider your tongue…blessing or cursing?
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Jesus
taught His disciples that very thing. Good advice for us, too.
Then Peter said to Jesus,
"Explain to us the parable that says people aren't defiled by what they
eat." "Don't you understand yet?" Jesus asked. "Anything
you eat passes through the stomach and then goes into the sewer. But the words
you speak come from the heart—that’s what defiles you. For from the heart come
evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all sexual immorality, theft, lying, and
slander. These are what defile you. Eating with unwashed hands will never
defile you."
Matthew 15:15-20
Words can
disgrace a person. Where do those “words” come from? From the heart and mind of
the person, of course. Sometimes our hearts need cleansing—to get rid of inappropriate
thoughts and habits. Start over. David asked God for just that. I’ve done that
many times too, when I’ve found my language a little trashy—sounding like a
friend who spoke like a truck driver!
Search me, O God, and know my
heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that
offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life. Psalm 139:23-24
Don't keep looking at my sins.
Remove the stain of my guilt. Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal
spirit within me. Do not banish me from your presence, and don't take your Holy
Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to
obey you. Psalm
51:9-12
Yes.
Those are the prayers we should have. Cleanse me. Renew my spirit. Restore my
joy.
Prayer
– Lord, Cleanse me. Renew my spirit. Restore my joy. You are my hope and my
salvation. May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing
to you, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer. Psalm 19:14
Verse
of Salvation ~ This is all the more urgent, for you know how late it is; time
is running out. Wake up, for our salvation is nearer now than when we first
believed. The night is almost gone; the day of salvation will soon be here. So
remove your dark deeds like dirty clothes, and put on the shining armor of
right living. Because we belong to the day, we must live decent lives for all
to see. Don't participate in the darkness of wild parties and drunkenness, or
in sexual promiscuity and immoral living, or in quarreling and jealousy.
Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. And don't
let yourself think about ways to indulge your evil desires. Romans 13:11-14
© 2025 Text, photos, and illustrations by Mickey M. Hunacek. All
rights reserved.
All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless
otherwise noted.
New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale
House Foundation.
Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream,
Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Biblical search from Blue Letter Bible - http://v3.blueletterbible.org/search.cfm.
Books by Mickey M.
Hunacek
Available as e-books or paperbacks at Amazon.com
Parenting Day By Day - Daily Devotional for Building Character
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