“Set a guard, O LORD, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips.” — Psalm 141.3

Woe to our tongue! Therein lies the power to conquer a heart but also to break it. The right word can guarantee a second date to the potential suitor. The wrong word can mean that he will not have the privilege of that person’s company ever again.

A story that I posted recently illustrates the power of the tongue perfectly. The son asks his dad:

“Dad, how do wars start?”
“This is how it works, son: suppose that France invades our borders…”
“Honey, don’t teach this kind of thing to our son. France would never do something like that. By the way, Dover and Calais has now sorted out its immigration issues.”
“Woman, we are just supposing that this happened.”
“But this is an idiotic assumption. It would never happen.”
“Woman, be quiet. This is just an example…”
“You’re the one who should be quiet. You’re not making any sense with your examples.”
“Woman, you’re making me lose my temper.”
“What? Are you threatening me? Do you think I am afraid of you?”
“WOMAN…”
“OK, OK dad. Now I know how wars start…”

The Bible goes as far as to say that the one who doesn’t stumble on his words is a perfect man (James3.2). Think about it for a moment. What have you been saying, or maybe not saying that has made your life imperfect?

 Here are five tips to help you watch over your words:

1. Don’t say everything that comes to your mind. Sincerity has a limit. Speak only what you have thought about first, but don’t say everything you think about.
2. Multiply this precaution ten times over when you are angry.
3. Don’t use text messages (SMS, email, WhatsApp, etc) to communicate or discuss sensitive issues. Things can be easily misinterpreted. The good old face-to-face method is always better.
4. Say what needs to be said. Measure your words, but say what has to be said, don’t bottle it in. There is no point in thinking afterwards, “I should have said this or that.” Take courage.
5. When in doubt, wait and think your ideas through before speaking.

 This is the second part of the 7-day meditation on Psalm 141. If you want to start from the beginning, click here. How to participate:

1. Read Psalm 141 in your Bible and meditate on its words throughout this week.
2. Make a prayer request to God for your love life (or any other area where there is a more urgent need) during the morning hours for seven days as of today.
3. Be specific in your request; write it down on a sheet of paper and keep it in your Bible, on the page of Psalm 141.
4. Log on to this blog daily and read the messages that will follow.
5. On the seventh day (March 26), take your request to the Love Therapy meeting nearest to you and give it to the pastor in charge.
6. This is optional: invite someone, who is in need of this, to join you in doing this challenge.

Let’s do this challenge together. Do exactly as instructed. Have faith that your request will be answered.

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