Horse Whisperer

March 23

Read: James 3:1-12

Horse Whisperer

“And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body.” (v.2)

Small things steer big things. Things that seem “tiny” actually impact other things which are much more significant than we would expect. For the second time in a short span, the scriptures warn us about our “tongue” and it’s need to be “tamed”:

“If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person's religion is worthless” (James 1:26)

“And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell.” (James 3:6)

I am squarely convicted this morning by this passage. There is nowhere to hide in it! What we say has a profound impact on what we do, and it is a window into who we are becoming. It reveals to us the battlefronts within us. I don’t think we normally link controlling our speech to being able to control our body … but James says this clearly in verse 2. (see above) If our speech is out of control… sooner or later our body will be out of control. The flip-side is true as well; if our speech is Spirit-led and under control - then our bodies will be Spirit-led and under control. We don’t get to think to ourselves that our words and our actions are separate things.

James gives 2 examples of the “big” being led by the “small”: horses with bits in their mouths and ships by their rudders. (v.3,4) I know we like to think of our “us” steering our speech - but what if our speech in some ways steers us? how often do we think of the “tongue” (our speech) as the boat that we steer with the “rudder” of our will… but maybe there are ways it is the other way around?

Try paying attention to what you say today. What is it that we talk about? What does it say about who you are and what is going on inside of you? Another way to approach this is try saying out loud today some positive things… Godly things… and see if it steers the rest of you in a good direction! It it tempting to think that our speech is not important… or that we can have a little but of the “sour” mixed in with the sweet and that it is no big deal - BUT THIS IS NOT THE CASE:

“It (the tongue)  is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water.”

Tame the tongue and you tame the body! Love you guys. - JDP