I got Tenth place for this writing in a writing competition
“And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.” James 3:6 KJV
I guess these are strong words; nevertheless they are words that never can be altered.
A fire can destroy property and ruin one financially even to the point where one needs to move. When we compare this to the tongue that it can set something alight, it can ruin a person’s life in the community.
The Tongue can give a devastation of reputation. The Tongue can leave ashes or things in that person’s life that cannot be repaired.
Photos and personal belongings can be destroyed by fire, as so with our tongue set on fire to ruin ones life and destroy the photo image of one’s reputation.
Satan wants to destroy people’s testimonies not only in churches but in the community so that churches even believe the supposed wrongness that was started by the fire of the tongue.
I was in a Church at one time I thought was right for my Children and myself. The Word of God was preached and I did not have a problem.
Much to my dismay, I was called to a meeting with the Pastor and two other “mature” Christians. Without going into too much detail, I was accused of an unruly act. Not only was this act against the Word of God the Bible, it was also against morality.
Of course the act that I was accused of, I could never do. The rumour got around the small church so bad that I had to leave. This little fire nearly ended our marriage, as we were so distraught.
After a time, I looked up the internet to see what others have done in a similar situation. Yes, with no surprise, some had ended their marriage. Some had moved to a faraway State. And some had even left the country after having such a false accusation done to them.
How big is the tongue of iniquity? It is world size. It is a world size of darkness; evil; immortality; injustice; unfairness and wickedness.
The tongue defiles the whole body or it pollutes the whole body. We have heard much about pollution in this expanding world. We learn over the TV and News media, how we need to clean up pollution. Yet there is not much said about cleaning up the defilement or the pollution in our lives from the fire of the tongue.
If we have a real fire and there were chemicals near by; the air would stink. So do our lives when we defile the whole body and others with our tongue.
The words of the tongue can never be altered weather in beauty or as a fire that could destroy a life.
An affective prayer I have used before.
So let us pray.
Father in Heaven; forgive us this day if we have used our tongue in an unwise way that could have destroyed someone's life. I pray for that person and that he or she will ask God for His wisdom and to guide them in the way that would be pleasing to you. I also ask that you would forgive me for saying things that I should not have said and ask that you will teach me to ask of you what I should say before I speak. I pray this in the name of Our Lord Jesus Christ amen.
Note: This writing was inspired by another of my writings but different.
