Compiled By: Lisa K Gonzales
From: The Life Application Study Bible
1 “Help, O LORD, for the GODly are fast disappearing! The faithful have vanished from the earth! 2 Neighbors lie to each other, speaking with flattering lips and insincere hearts. 3 May the LORD bring their flatter to an end and silence their proud tongues. 4 They say, ‘We will lie to our hearts’ content. Our lips are our own – who can stop us?’” ~ Psalm 12:1-4
Living for GOD in a deceitful world can be a difficult and lonely battle. At one time the great prophet Elijah felt so lonely he wanted to die. But GOD told him that there were 7,000 other faithful servants. 4 “Then he went on alone into the desert, traveling all day. He sat down under a solitary broom tree and prayed that he might die. ‘I have had enough, LORD,’ he said. ‘Take my life, for I am no better than my ancestors.’” – 14 “He replied again, ‘I have zealously served the LORD GOD Almighty. But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with YOU, torn down YOUR alters, and now they are trying to kill me, too.’” – 1 Kings 19:4,14 – “Yet I will preserve seven thousand others in Israel who have never bowed to Baal or kissed him!” – 1 Kings 19:18 – Kissing Baal meant kissing some object that represented him to show loyalty to him. We are never alone in our battle against evil. When we feel alone, we should seek out other believers for strength and support.
We may be tempted to believe that lies are relatively harmless, even useful at times. But GOD does not overlook lies, flattery, deception, or boasting. Each of these sins originates from a bad attitude that is eventually expressed in our speech. The tongue can be our greatest enemy because, though it is small, it can do tremendous damage. – 5 “So also, the tongue is a small thing, but what enormous damage it can do. A tiny spark can set a great forest on fire. 6 And the tongue is a flame of fire. It is full of wickedness that can ruin your whole life. It can turn the entire course of your life into a blazing flame of destruction, for it is set on fire by hell itself.” – James 3:4-5 – Before we speak, we should ask ourselves: Is what I want to say true? Is it necessary? Is it kind? Will it build up or tear down? – Satan uses the tongue to divide people and pit them against each other. We should not be careless with what we say, thinking we can apologize for it later, because even if we do, the scars remain. – Before we speak, we should remember that words are like fire – we can neither control nor reverse the damage they can do. The tongues wickedness has its source in hell itself. Be careful how you use yours.
Father keep watch over our hearts because what is in our hearts will surely come out in what we say. Help us to remember to ask ourselves if what we are about to say is true, necessary, or kind, and will build up and not tear down the person we are talking to. Help us LORD, to be careful how we use our tongues and to remember that our words are like fire and we can neither control nor reverse the damage they can do.
Photo: Sundown in Texas (Port Lavaca)
Photo By: Lisa K Gonzales
Click on photo to enlarge
