The Mighty Member

So also the tongue is a small member; how great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire! And the tongue is a fire. With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse those who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing.                James 3:5, 9-10

                                       The Tongue      Nadia Ayari c.2012

This week, James ruminates on the power of the tongue. He muses over the fact that such a small body part can both bless and curse. We are simultaneously saints and sinners.

    

Think back for a moment. What statements made to you do you remember from years past? Do you remember the hurtful ones or the encouraging ones? I think we tend to remember the former more viscerally. Was it a parent? A teacher? A school yard bully? A sibling? For me it was something an aunt said to me on my wedding day that made me feel “not okay.” The memory of it still stings.

  

We cannot un-ring the bell. We cannot take back words once they slide forth from our mouths.  We can use our speech to impale and to spread lies, or we can use our speech to bless, strengthen and encourage. 

This week, let us initiate a new conversation with God. Let us ask for forgiveness for those times we used our tongues as weapons and ask for the fortitude and discipline to use them now only for the greater good: for the building up of the body of Christ and for the realization of the Kingdom.