TAMING THE TONGUE | DAY 1

DAY 1

PART 1: STUDY

Key Passage- Ephesians 4:29-32 (NLT)

“Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them. And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.”

Words of Wisdom- Proverbs 13:3 (AMP)

“The one who guards his mouth [thinking before he speaks] protects his life; The one who opens his lips wide [and chatters without thinking] comes to ruin.”

Scripture Promise- Matthew 19:26 (NLT)

“Jesus looked at them intently and said, Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.”

PART 2: DEVOTIONAL

CRUCIFY THE FLESH. WALK IN THE SPIRIT. CHOOSE TO SPEAK LIFE.

In our key passage for today we are taught that our tongues should be used to build one another up and not to tear down by using foul and abusive speech. Our words should be an encouragement to others. Words matter. Taming the tongue is not just about speaking with Godliness it’s about the impact they have on others and how our words affect one another. 

The passage also tells us that we should not bring sorrow to Gods Spirit by how we live. Our ability to honor God and live rightly is heavily dependent on how well we strive to take our tongue. Scripture tells us that our words hold the power of life and death in them (Proverbs 18:21). We must strive to speak life! 

In this passage we are tasked to let go of anger, slander, malice, evil behavior and the like. Such things only prevent us from being able to fully walk in the power of the Holy Spirit. As long as we have no control over our tongue we will struggle in these areas and we will not have the capacity to do what the remainder of the passage says which is to be kind and tender towards others and offer the same forgiveness for their wrongs as Jesus forgave us for ours. 

Thinking before we Speak can often be a tall order. It’s easy to react and just let our words fly, however guarding the tongue and taking the time to think about what we are going to say before we say it will save us from the consequences of spewing out whatever garbage our flesh initially throws out. Ask God to help you start thinking before speaking. Ask Him to direct your thoughts and to help you speak with the love of the Holy Spirit. In this way you have a better chance and learning to tame the tongue. 

Our daily Scripture Promise reminds us that with God everything is possible but on our own, it is not. This goes for taming the tongue as well, we cannot do it on our own. We have to have God’s help. We get our help from God through prayer, reading and meditating on His Word and by trying to live a Godly life. Ask for His help today with helping you to tame your tongue. It is with His power alone we stand a chance at living a Godly life.

PART 3: PRAYER

Dear Heavenly Father, help us to tame our tongue.

Help us to guard our mouth so that we only speak life and not death and that our words are used to lift each other up and not to tear one another down.

Help us to rid ourselves of anger, slander, malice and anything else that hinders our walk with You. Lord please give us strength to do what is right and to live a life that is pleasing to You.

Thank you for sending Jesus to die for our sins that we may receive Your forgiveness and have the ability to walk hand in hand with You when we do not deserve it.

Help us to spend each day trying to do better than the day before.

We ask these things in the name of Jesus Christ. AMEN!