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Our small group started the Priscilla Shirer study, Can We Talk? last night. The six-week course was designed to encourage a more effective prayer life. The first week’s lessons are about the tongue and how we use our mouths.

Start with the tongue

I’ve taught on prayer for years, but beginning with the tongue was a little unexpected. It’s a great starting point, though. Two verses in James explain why:

The mouth is all I can see of the animal in the photo above. My first thought was “llama,” then “donkey,” and, finally, “horse in the winter with long hair.” The mouth captures my attention in a way it wouldn’t if closed. It’s so unattractive that I can’t tell if the rest of the horse is beautiful or not.

My mouth, too, has all too often dominated how I seem to people over the years. I’ve spoken without thinking or, worse, said what I thought without caring about the consequences. As someone I love once said, I used my mouth like a weapon. I was good at it, too, if slashing the hearts and confidence of others with your words is a skill to be admired.

The Heart-Mouth Connection

The heart-mouth connection is real and more evident in what we say than we’d like. What came out of my mouth, in the past and more recently than I’d like to admit, had more to do with pride on my part than a desire to impart truth. I believed “my” way was best, what I wanted was what should be done.

It didn’t take me long to learn the squeaky wheel gets the grease, the loudest voice is the one we hear, she who persists the longest often gets her way. I’ve known this, and lived it, most of my life. All those adages may be true, but they don’t tell us about the hurt those loud, squeaky voices and those arrogant words leave behind.

The consuming fire in our mouths

I’m sorry for the arrogance with which I’ve spoken over the years and, if I could take those words back, I would. Words once spoken, however, can never be recalled.

That, my friends, is why James describes the tongue as a consuming fire and why he says no one can tame it. Only God can extinguish the fire and bring balm to our mouths.

Clean the heart and tame the tongue

 If we want a right relationship with God, we need more than clean hearts and hands. We need clean tongues, as well.

Let’s think about our words for a moment, if we can stand it. How did we speak in the last week, the last month, the last year? Were our words a fountain of life or a spewing fountain of poison? Did we bless God and cursed our neighbor? Did we speak words that demean and hurt or build up and encourage? 

If we want to please God, to have a sweet and intimate relationship with Him, we must allow Him to tame our tongues. 

The choice is ours. Will we surrender this tiny bit of our anatomy to His control? Will we allow our words to bless, encourage, flow with kindness like a river of love washing over those who most need it?

I choose surrender, repentance, cleansing, change. I want my mouth to be a source of blessing to all I meet. What about you?

“Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.” Proverbs 18:21kjv

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_column_text]You might also enjoy reading:

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When the Prayer of Desperation Becomes Through the Roof Prayer [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_column_text]I’m so glad you took the time to read all the way through to the end. Thank you. If this post blessed you, please take a moment and share on your social media platforms. It’s a huge help if you also pin to Pinterest. Here’s a pinnable image to use:[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column column_width_percent=”100″ position_vertical=”middle” overlay_alpha=”50″ gutter_size=”3″ medium_width=”0″ mobile_width=”0″ shift_x=”0″ shift_y=”0″ shift_y_down=”0″ z_index=”0″ width=”1/3″][vc_single_image media=”67327″ media_width_percent=”75″ media_link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fwww.leannahollis.com%2Fproper-prayer-begins-by-taming-the-tongue%2F|||”][/vc_column][/vc_row]