www.victoriaboyson.com I've always thought what James teaches about our Christianity being worthless unless we control our tongue (James 1:26) was just a little too ambitious. Still, James is one of my favorite books of the Bible and one I've studied repeatedly. Yet, I felt recently that in my previous study, I had only scratched the surface of the value of the book of James. We embrace our Father with our words, we embrace faith with our words, we repel fear with our words, indeed, we embrace all the power in heaven with our words. There is very little we can do to affect the spirit realm that isn't done with our mouths, so naturally we need to learn the power of our tongue, amen? It is because we are made in the image of God that our mouths are so important. Truly, if we want to affect positive change in the world, we will do it through our tongue. Through the declaration of our mouth, we will, "Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, And a two-edged sword in their hand - to execute on them the judgment written; This is an honor for all His godly ones" Psalm 149:6&9. Our authority is in our declaration! James 3:1 says, "Not many should become teachers in the church, for we who teach will be judged more strictly." He says this right before he talks about the power of our tongue, so naturally we are to understand that those who teach will be judged more strictly. But we will all bear the weight of the words we say. We will be judged by our own words, for they reveal what's in our heart. "Indeed," he continues, "we all make many mistakes. [But] if we could control our tongues we would be perfect and could also control ourselves in every other way" James 3:2. So important is the work of the tongue that James says once we get control of IT, we've got control of ourselves in "every other way." We can consider this good news or bad. If we lose control of our tongue we will not have control of any other aspect of ourselves or, if we want to think more positively, once we take control of our mouth, we will have great authority to keep ourselves in check. The Father Meant for You to Reign in This Life!What a powerful tool the tongue can be for us! "We can make a large horse go wherever we want by means of a small bit in its mouth. And a small rudder makes a huge ship turn wherever the pilot chooses to go, even though the winds are strong. In the same way, the tongue is a small thing that makes grand speeches [takes credit for the work of the whole body] (James 3:3-5 NLT). Just the tiny little tongue can pilot a great ship even during a raging storm. How you choose to use your tongue can determine your life's course. But it is even more than a pilot; it is a great creator - it can create an abundant life for you or destroy your life's work. "But [it's true] a tiny spark can set a great forest on fire. And the tongue is a flame of fire. It is a whole world of wickedness, corrupting your entire body. It can set your whole life on fire, for it is set on fire by hell itself" James 3:6 (emphasis mine). Such a small thing can cause great harm or can liberate those bound in darkness! "For whatever is in your heart determines what you say" Matthew 12:34. Your tongue bears the fruit of the heart and harvests the seeds of thoughts you've allowed to root in your mind. The tongue is the sum of your life! All you've poured into your soul through movies, the Word or your actions towards others comes out through your tongue and becomes the fruit of your life. Powerful! If we allow "hell" to establish its beliefs in our mind, it has the kindling to light a fire that could destroy a great forest. Sadly, I've seen this process. The demon offense comes to prime the mind to receive the lies of destruction. If the lies of the enemy are left unaddressed by the heart and Holy Spirit has not been allowed to govern the soul, there is almost nothing that is unimagined by the infected mind. Without repentance, the enemy has gained control of the tongue and will cause great destruction. It hurts to be lied about, but I would rather be slandered than be the slanderer. When a fire spreads, it brings destruction, but when the fire goes out there can be rebirth where destruction's ruined. But in the life and mind of a "fire starter," there's no break from the destructive lives and the more they spread, the darker their life becomes. The enemy will use them as often as he likes, because they've become little more than a tool to him now and extremely effective in harassing the saints. The enemy has no pity for its new toy and usually will harass their mind night and day with even more extravagant, devilish lies. I can't imagine anything more horrible. Except for maybe hell itself, nothing could be a more horrid place to be. Sometimes, when I talk to God about the life of such a one and of the destruction they are causing in the lives of others, He responds with such sadness and a heavy burden saying, "Apart of the penalty for their lies is the life they live" - it is torment of which they receive very little reprieve. As horrible as this sounds, we have to remember that any of us can become a fire starter; it only takes a spark. But, happily, any fire starter can find redemption. Truly! The tongue is powerful and we can easily dig a hole for ourselves with it, but if we do we can, by the grace of God, dig ourselves out with it as well. One declaration at a time! With a heart-felt prayer, our lives can take a new direction. We can conquer the demons who've lied to us and we can become a blessing. If our tongue can be powerfully destructive, it can also transform our lives, how we live and how we think of ourselves. For, "those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of righteousness" James 3:18. The seeds of peace are the words you speak! You harness great power when you put a bridle on your tongue, and what great power it is. What a great work it can do! It can make you an extraordinary warrior, triumphant and full of the peace and rest of heaven. Repent and Transform Your Life"If you are wise and understand God's ways, prove it by living an honorable life" James 3:13. Renew your minds daily, even hourly if that's what it takes - renew, rethink, and reform the thoughts of your mind. You've been given powerful wisdom in the Word to reform the way your mind works. Your faith is a gift - one you can build to become a powerful fire extinguisher. Re-create your life by releasing the truths of heaven through a bridled tongue and you will stave off the destructive powers of your life and suddenly you will have hope for your own future! You have the power to change the world! So, come humbly to your Father with a repentant heart and resist Satan's attempts to control your mind with the lies of hell. Submit yourselves to God and surrender your heart and ask Him for His grace to remake your mind - to reform your thinking and transform your life. It's only in submitting to the Father's will that we can hope to change. He knows what you need to capture your heart and transform your soul, so let Him have His way with you. He works only for your good; you can trust Him. What He takes away He will indeed restore, but it will be His life abundant with His kingdom benefits. Let Him love you and watch what love can do for you, surrender the thoughts in your mind, the hurts and offenses to His feet. Don't hold on to them, don't try to defend yourself or fight your own war - let Him fight for you. Lay it all at His feet as an offering to Him and you will be truly set free - stronger than iron! Become His LoveThe old you that clung to the worthless things in your life has got to go. Give Him to Jesus and watch how He will be transformed with new life. Your Father is transforming this world. He said, "I am making everything new!" (Revelations 21:5 NLT). That means you too! You Father loves you so much, and He wants to renew your life. For, He is "the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not" (Romans 4:17 NLT). Let Him reNEW your mind, destroying all the strongholds and cleaning out the cobwebs of your mind, pouring in His amazing love! You were truly created for His love. In a very small measure, the Father has revealed to me His great love for humanity. I have tried, but I cannot come up with a way to convey the depth of His love. All human words fall short. His love does not even compare to what we know on earth as love. Our love forgives with great effort, but His love rushes to forgive. Our love tolerates the differences in others, His love celebrates them. Our love tries with great effort not reject, but His love truly accepts every fiber of your human being. How can we fathom His love, our human words and feelings betray us? We do not understand His unconditional love - how could we? If we could see a small revelation of His love for us, we would begin to understand why He gave us the power of life and death in our mouths (Proverbs 18:21). We would understand it's power to transform the dead things of this world into His abundant life - we could reclaim the lost with one word! In this life we are compelled to hate and curse because of the wickedness we see around us, but in His eyes He does not look at the lost and see sin, He sees broken people devastated by darkness. He couldn't hate them if He tried. You don't understand - He IS love. He is not consumed by love, it is who He is - He couldn't be anything but LOVE. So, when He looks at you, He sees you through love and utters a deep guttural cry of great anguish that fills the universe when you are taken away from Him. And there aren't human words that could describe the overwhelming universal transformation that takes place in Him when you return to Him. Your words are not just what we know on earth as life and death, but they are dark and light - good and evil. Your words are what embraces our Father God. Do you love Him? Please tell Him so. He misses you. | ||
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