Can You Control Your Tongue?

James 2:22

 

 

If you’re like most people, you probably get into trouble with your words sometimes. When you were younger, you might have used bad words to try to look cool. Now that you’re older, your words can still cause problems. A joke at the wrong time, gossip, or angry words can hurt someone you care about.

 

There’s an old saying: “We cannot take back the arrow we’ve shot into the air, water under a bridge, or the spoken word.”

 

It’s hard for everyone to control what they say. For example, we speak about 120 words every minute! That’s 1,200 words in a short 10-minute chat. In an hour-long phone call, we say 7,200 words! That’s a lot to be responsible for!

 

Think About It

James knew how hard it is to control our words. In James 3:10, it says, “Praise and curses come from the same mouth. My brothers and sisters, this should not happen!” What do you say about your friends? Are you nice to their faces but say bad things behind their backs? Maybe you need to say sorry to someone because of something you’ve said. If you find it hard to control your words, read James 3 again and find a friend who can help remind you to follow what James teaches.