January 28, 2016

Control Your Words

Those who guard their lips preserve their lives,
but those who speak rashly will come to ruin. -- Proverbs 13:3

Yesterday God gave me a wonderful opportunity to observe the Wonderful Wednesday programs at my church. This terrific program welcomes children in elementary school to church to participate in Bible time, music and recreation. Through it all they learn about God and life lessons.

It was interesting to hear the children talk about self-control, choosing our words carefully and learning to control what words come out of our mouths. They can be so honest sometimes. It’s amazing how they usually know what they should do even if they don’t always do it.

One example was in sports. What happens if you lose the game by 1 point? Do you stomp off and talk bad about the other team, blaming the refs and everybody else? Or do you congratulate the other players and take the loss as an opportunity to learn?

All the kids seem to know what they should do. Most of them admitted it’s probably not what they would do. How about you? How would you handle it? I live in a state that is horribly divided when it comes to college football. It sure can get ugly sometimes. Sometimes I hear or read some of the comments coming from some of those Christian fans and I am amazed that they don’t see how their words don’t match up with the beliefs they claim.

In my Bible reference, the above verse was listed under “words” and under “self-control.” When we control our words, we can control our lives. That matters. As one of the volunteer teachers said today, treating people with kindness will take you much further in this world than being ugly to them. It’s a lesson we adults should learn.