Zip the Lip

"Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers."              Ephesians 4:29.  NKJV

Are you a grumbler? I think it is something that we are all susceptible to quite often.When things get on top of us and catch us unawares, we can turn into a whinger. We need to watch this area because, a glance in Exodus 16 & 18 shows us that grumblers died in the desert. A humbling thought. They were never satisfied with what God gave them. 'Well, that's different,' you may say. But it's not; our bodies are Temples of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19) and it is so easy to grieve Him (Ephesians 4:30). Therefore, we need to be aware of that.

A corrupt word is when something is decayed and rotten; so when we speak a word that isn't becoming of a person of God, we may be uttering decay. How do we do this? Well telling jokes is one way. We can be tempted to use graphic language to attempt to make  the joke funnier. When we're in certain company, it is so easy to drop our guard and allow ourselves to 'fit in' with the crowd. It isn't about 'fitting in' with the crowd, but 'standing out,' in the crowd; that should be our goal. 

We don't have to live such sanctimonious lives that we shut ourselves away from all but Christian people. If we did that, how would people get the opportunity to hear about Jesus? But we do need to be an example. This is when people see there is something different about us. One of the biggest problems are our words - what we say and how we say them. When we are not in control of our mouth, we can tend to criticise, moan or even say unkind words to people when they upset us. Take for example, when we're driving. Someone cuts us up, drives erratically near us or even honks at us. If we're not careful, a barrage of unedifying words can be spoken and once out, they can't be taken back.

Does what you say build people up? Do you bless them when you speak? Does what you say build you up? After all, you're a hearer of your words too. It's an area that perhaps we all need to work on. Oftentimes, we need to zip the lip until we can allow something good to come out. 
Let us be aware that, 'Death and life are in the power of the tongue and those who love it, will eat its fruit.' (Proverbs 18:21).
If you can say something good - then say it. If you can't, then zip your lip until you can!

Copyright 2020 Grahame Howard

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