James 3:3-6 (The Message)
3-5 A bit in the mouth of a horse controls the whole horse. A small rudder on a huge ship in the hands of a skilled captain sets a course in the face of the strongest winds. A word out of your mouth may seem of no account, but it can accomplish nearly anything—or destroy it!
5-6 It only takes a spark, remember, to set off a forest fire. A careless or wrongly placed word out of your mouth can do that. By our speech we can ruin the world, turn harmony to chaos, throw mud on a reputation, send the whole world up in smoke and go up in smoke with it, smoke right from the pit of hell.
As I was reading through James 3 this morning I was reminded of the famous quote, “Better to stay silent and be thought a fool, than to speak up and remove all doubt.” (I’ve seen this quote credited to everyone from Will Rogers to Abraham Lincoln.)
If James 3 tells me the negative and hurtful ways that my words can damage and injure those around me. It got me to thinking about my positive, life-giving words. Can a carefully thought out word extinguish a forest fire in someones life? Can my words make the world a better place, and turn chaos into harmony? Could my words build up the reputations of others? Could my words help send people to heaven?
Powerful thoughts…
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