Our theme for this month: “Wisdom”
Our Bible verse for today: “When there are many words, sin is unavoidable, but the one who controls his lips is wise.” Proverbs 10:19
Our thought for today: “A wise person is careful not to speak too quickly or too often.”
I have always admired people who have the ability to control their tongue. I’m impressed by those “Yoda-like” people who don’t say a lot but when they do speak, it is very profound and deeply wise. On the other hand, I’ve found that I have little patience for people who “shoot from the lip” and spout off about everything, all the time. They’ve also got something to say and it’s usually loud and it usually goes on for a long time.
In Proverbs 10:19 Solomon reminds us that the more we speak the more likely we are to eventually say something silly, or worse, sinful. That is also why in James 1:19 James cautions us that we should be quick to listen and slow to speak. In other words, “God gave you two ears and only one mouth, therefore you should listen twice as much as you speak.”
Abraham Lincoln is known for the wisdom of his words. What I discovered about him however, after having read several biographies about him, is that Abraham Lincoln was so conscious and concerned about the words he spoke that he carefully scripted everything. That was true of all his public speaking, he almost never made any extemporaneous remarks in public, but it was also frequently true of his private conversations too. Lincoln would often think through his private conversations in advance, outline what he wanted to say, and then refer to his notes throughout the conversation. He did that because he was acutely aware of the importance of his words and he therefore wanted to maintain close control over what came out of his mouth.
The Biblical wisdom we learn this morning from James and Solomon is that we should think before we speak and that when we do speak, our words should be measured and few. Why? Because a wise person is careful not to speak too quickly or too often.
God Bless,
Oak Hill Baptist Church 