WEEKLY BIBLE STUDY 8/24.....TAMING THE TONGUE (PART 3/3)

TAMING THE TONGUE (PART 3/3)

The last two weeks we’ve been learning how to tame the tongue through Bible Verses and Praying.  The last thing is to focus on some areas where you want to start learning to say the right words. Our words can certainly do a great deal of harm, but the good news is, they can do a lot of good, as well. Proverbs 18:21 says that the tongue has the power of life and death, so we can choose to use it for harm or for good.

Choose one area where your words can do good; for example, encouraging words. Make a commitment to the Lord that you will consciously encourage at least two people today. Pray about that as you get going in the morning. First Thessalonians 5:11 says, "Therefore encourage one another and build each other up..." That's a command; we are to build people up. Do you do that regularly?

Well, start praying about it and ask God to show you who needs encouragement today. I'm certain you can easily find two people to encourage. Look for them; pray for them; and say some encouraging words to them. You'll be amazed that as you encourage them, you will yourself be encouraged. And it takes the focus off of yourself and onto others. That's always helpful.

Also, anytime you think something nice about someone, put those thoughts into words. When you have a sincere compliment in your mind, why not say it? It could be just the thing that person needs to hear today.

Now, if you and I start focusing on the areas where our tongues are out of control and get serious about using our tongues to bring words of encouragement and hope to others, we're going to see incredible changes in our own lives.

Here are some great benefits of taming your tongue.

You will get rid of a lot of stress. When our tongues are out of control, we bring a lot of stress into our lives. Having to listen to ourselves talk all the time is stressful, and when we say the wrong words, we feed the wrong messages into our minds and bring more stress on ourselves.

          You will get rid of self-focus in your life. I tell you the truth, I've never known a self-focused person who was happy. When you get the focus off of yourself, you're going to be a much happier person. So, when you stop talking about your problems and complaining about them, you'll stop thinking about them so much and you'll think of others. That's going to make you happier.

Your relationships will greatly improve as you tame your tongue. Just think of the damage you've done to relationships when your tongue was out of control. Now, you'll be saying words of encouragement and love, and those relationships will blossom.

You will improve your performance. When you say the right words, it will greatly influence whatever job you have and how well you do it. That could result in all kinds of good things for you.

But most importantly, when your tongue is tamed, you'll be more like Jesus, transformed more and more into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, as we read in 2 Corinthians 3:18. And that means your life will bring glory to him, your testimony will be stronger, people will want to know what makes you different, they'll be attracted to you and you will be a good ambassador for Jesus.

If we control our tongues, we control our whole body. James told us that and it's true. It takes commitment, prayer and the power of God's Spirit, but it is not mission impossible. We can do all things through Christ who gives us strength.