Weekly Meditation for Sept 13th

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Weekly Meditation
by Michael Desmond

James 3:1-12 (New International Version)

Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he or she says, that person is perfect, able to keep his or her whole body in check.


When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. Likewise the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of one's life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.

All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and creatures of the sea are being tamed and have been tamed by people, but no one can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.
With the tongue we praise our Lord and God, and with it we curse men and women, who have been made in God's likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt[a] water flow from the same spring? My brothers and can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.

Words come from somewhere and not just from our mouths. Dictionaries for sure. Perhaps there are dictionaries of our hearts as well. Billions of individual dictionaries all expressing the persons speaking. So as persons we have the stuff of comfort or ridicule in our hearts. Of gossip or of God. How will we use our dictionaries?