Begin with 2 minutes of stillness and silence before God.

Can you think of a time someone said something encouraging to you that helped you through a difficult time?  

Can you think of a time someone said something hurtful to you that had a lasting impact on you?  

I’m sure you can quickly recall several instances as answers to each of these questions - no matter who said them, or how long ago they were said, we know for a fact that words have immense power in our lives. The power of the tongue and the words we wield are addressed several times throughout scripture:

• “The soothing tongue is a tree of life, but a perverse tongue crushes the spirit.” Proverbs 15:4
• “Those who guard their mouths and their tongues keep themselves from calamity.” Proverbs 21:23
• “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” Ephesians 4:29
• “For, “Whoever would love life and see good days must keep their tongue from evil and their lips from deceitful speech.” I Peter 3:10

James chapter 3 has a great deal to say about the power of the tongue. Take a moment to read verses James 3:1-12. There are several things we learn about the tongue in this passage. The tongue is compared in this passage to several things: the small bit that guides a horse and the rudder that controls the direction of a great ship. It is compared to a spark that sets ablaze a forest! In these metaphors, we see that the tongue, though seemingly small or insignificant, has the power to control and destroy.  

Verses 9 and 10 describe the hypocritical nature of our tongue - the way we use it to both bless and curse. I’m not sure about you, but I definitely know I’ve struggled with controlling this part of the power of the tongue. One moment I am saying things that are true and praiseworthy, and next, I am saying things that are destructive and despicable. Any duplicity in our hearts that is inconsistent with a life redeemed by God is revealed through our mouths. As followers of Christ, we must begin to master our tongues and engage in speech that is consistent with our relationship with Christ. But verse 8 tells us that “no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.” YIKES. How are we supposed to take control of our tongues when it’s humanly impossible?  

Read James 3:13-18. We cannot rely on our own strength and power to master our tongue; we have to rely on the wisdom of Christ! Our earthly wisdom compels us to live from a place of bitterness, jealousy, and selfishness, leading us to say things that are boastful or untrue, and ultimately reaping great dissension and sinfulness. But Godly wisdom is “first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere” (verse 18) and creates a harvest of peace!  

The way we use our tongues and the words we say give evidence of the wisdom that governs our hearts. When do not hand over control of our hearts to Christ, we cannot control our tongue, and from it comes all sorts of earthly and evil things. However, when we surrender completely to Christ and allow our speech to be an overflow of what He is doing in our hearts, it creates purity and peace that is evidence of who He is.

Take 2 minutes to reflect in silence.

Reflection:

• How do our words reveal what is going on in our hearts? What have the words you’ve been using lately been revealing about your heart?
• In what areas of your life do you need help taming your tongue? How can you seek Godly wisdom for these things specifically?
• How can you use the power of your words to build others up and glorify God this week? 

Family Devo: James 3

By: Lauren Strickland

When partnering with your family to know, love, and follow Jesus, we strive to create and share content filtered by the Head-Heart-Hands model.   

Head: the knowledge of God and His Word | Heart: the personal connection from scripture | Hands: a missional mindset  

Head (James 3:5)

This week, we’ve thought about what it means to know, love, and follow Jesus like a hero of the faith. We’ve been reminded that we can trust God no matter what, and trusting that God always loves us and is always with us helps us love others even when it's hard. We’ve talked about how important what we say we believe about God matches what we do in our everyday lives.  

Today, James reminds us that our words have great power, and because of this, we have a big responsibility to use our words wisely and kindly. This can be challenging! In fact, James says that training our mouths to speak wisely and kindly may be the hardest thing we ever do as Jesus followers. James says that while the mouth is just a small part of the body —it has a lot of power. He uses a few pictures to help us understand the power of our words and how challenging it can be to train ourselves to use our words in ways that build up rather than tear others down. In verse 5, he uses the image of fire. Just like fire can be both helpful and dangerous, our words have power to bring warmth or cause harm.  

Heart

Our family loves to go camping, especially in the fall. I can only think of a few things I love more than sitting around a cozy campfire on a cold night in the mountains with my family. I love the smokey smell of the fire, the crackling sound of the wood, the way a fire warms my cheeks and lights up the night around us. Gray and Judah are very careful to build a safe campfire and they always take the time to put it out completely when we pack up for the day. This is because when fire is not contained, even a little stray spark can destroy a whole forest! Our words are like this!  

Our words can encourage and spark hope or bring to light a fresh idea or new perspective. Even true words that may be hard for someone to hear (when spoken in a loving way) can also help someone we care about think about their own words or actions. This is kind and helpful.  

On the flip side, our words can be as devastating as a forest fire. They can harm others and destroy relationships. When we use our words in anger or jealousy or arrogance, they hurt like a wildfire. Gossip, bullying —even true words spoken in unloving ways can hurt others. I want my words to bring warmth and light like a campfire. I never want my words to hurt and destroy like a forest fire!  

I have learned that I choose my words more wisely when I remember the other good advice James gave us on Wednesday —be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to become angry —do you remember your signals? 

Hands

Our words have great power, just like fire. Take a quiet moment to think about the words you have spoken in the last couple of days. Have they been more like a warm campfire or raging forest fire? Is there anyone in your family or someone at school you might need to talk with—someone you may need to apologize to?  

There was a forest fire in the Smokey Mountains a few years ago. It was started by two young kiddos playing with matches. The fire destroyed a lot, but we were there recently and you know what I saw? New growth (new trees and flowers, buildings, and homes) where things had been destroyed in the fire. When we go back to the people we have hurt with our words, sincerely apologize, and ask their forgiveness —often—there can be new life in that friendship! You can begin to rebuild your relationship with the person you’ve hurt. Words are powerful like that!  

Prayer: Dear God, thank You for the gift of Your Word. Help us listen to Your Word and give us the courage to do it (even when it feels hard!) Give us courage to seek forgiveness from those our words have hurt. Help us see people around us who need encouraging words and remind us to use our words wisely in challenging moments with our friends and family.