Saturday, January 12, 2008 @ 9:24 PM
Psalm 12: Outflow of the Heart, the Mouth Speaks.

1 Help, LORD, for the godly are no more;
the faithful have vanished from among men.

2 Everyone lies to his neighbor;
their flattering lips speak with deception.

3 May the LORD cut off all flattering lips
and every boastful tongue

4 that says, "We will triumph with our tongues;
we own our lips —who is our master?"

5 "Because of the oppression of the weak
and the groaning of the needy,
I will now arise," says the LORD.
"I will protect them from those who malign them."

6 And the words of the LORD are flawless,
like silver refined in a furnace of clay,
purified seven times.

7 O LORD, you will keep us safe
and protect us from such people forever.

8 The wicked freely strut about
when what is vile is honored among men.

***

I dont know if you have heard of this saying:
Sticks and stones may break my bones,
but words will never hurt me.

I am not sure when I heard this, but I am sure it was during my childhood days, either kindergarden or primary school, when well-meaning teachers or adults must have used this to "toughen me up" because boys are supposed to be "macho" and "unbreakable".

Nothing can be further from the truth.
Unkind words hurt... A LOT. Whether it is done intentionally or at the slip of the tongue.

Remember...
That little white lie someone told.... then you discovered the truth?
That unkind gossip your colleague/classmate whispered about you... thinking you will never hear about it?
That bragging tongue that exaggerated everything, that you cant trust the words spoken, unable to tell the truth from fiction?
That cursing and swearing mouth, that tore down your dignity?

Jesus said in Matthew 12:34 "....For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks."

Our mouth betrays the intentions of our heart and character.

This is no rocket science. A person who spews vulgarities and punctuates his sentences with F-words, I can tell straight away what kind of person he is.

If as a teacher, I tell my students to watch what they say (I heard of a principal who once punished a student by forcing him to brush his teeth outside his office for being foul-mouth), then I am sure God will expect more from us.

We cannot use the same mouth to praise God and curse men.
Let's guard our mouth today.

Labels: Journey Through Psalms

Saturday, January 12, 2008 @ 9:24 PM
Psalm 12: Outflow of the Heart, the Mouth Speaks.

1 Help, LORD, for the godly are no more;
the faithful have vanished from among men.

2 Everyone lies to his neighbor;
their flattering lips speak with deception.

3 May the LORD cut off all flattering lips
and every boastful tongue

4 that says, "We will triumph with our tongues;
we own our lips —who is our master?"

5 "Because of the oppression of the weak
and the groaning of the needy,
I will now arise," says the LORD.
"I will protect them from those who malign them."

6 And the words of the LORD are flawless,
like silver refined in a furnace of clay,
purified seven times.

7 O LORD, you will keep us safe
and protect us from such people forever.

8 The wicked freely strut about
when what is vile is honored among men.

***

I dont know if you have heard of this saying:
Sticks and stones may break my bones,
but words will never hurt me.

I am not sure when I heard this, but I am sure it was during my childhood days, either kindergarden or primary school, when well-meaning teachers or adults must have used this to "toughen me up" because boys are supposed to be "macho" and "unbreakable".

Nothing can be further from the truth.
Unkind words hurt... A LOT. Whether it is done intentionally or at the slip of the tongue.

Remember...
That little white lie someone told.... then you discovered the truth?
That unkind gossip your colleague/classmate whispered about you... thinking you will never hear about it?
That bragging tongue that exaggerated everything, that you cant trust the words spoken, unable to tell the truth from fiction?
That cursing and swearing mouth, that tore down your dignity?

Jesus said in Matthew 12:34 "....For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks."

Our mouth betrays the intentions of our heart and character.

This is no rocket science. A person who spews vulgarities and punctuates his sentences with F-words, I can tell straight away what kind of person he is.

If as a teacher, I tell my students to watch what they say (I heard of a principal who once punished a student by forcing him to brush his teeth outside his office for being foul-mouth), then I am sure God will expect more from us.

We cannot use the same mouth to praise God and curse men.
Let's guard our mouth today.

Labels: Journey Through Psalms