May 16
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JAMES 3
How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! 6 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. 7 For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, 8 but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 9 With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. 10 From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. 11 Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? 12 Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water. – James 3:5-12
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JAMES 3 THE TONGUE IS A FIRE & UNTAMABLE
A poem inspired by these verses by ILMA
The tongue though a very small member of our body is a fire
It is deadly for it can set ablaze a whole wide forest and spread
It can affect our entire lives and may drag us into hell itself
Because it cannot be tamed unlike other creatures, it is very deadly.
One person’s tongue may speak out a gossip to someone
Before you know it, like fire it has reached the ears of everyone
From that tongue can come out lies that originated from the devil
The reputation of one person can be destroyed by this restless evil.
It is also from what we say that we can build up another human being
From that same mouth, we can also utter and destroy a person’s standing
Such blessings and cursing must not come from the same mouth
A firm believer in Christ will not yield to words that are filthy and foul.
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REFLECTION
• How can a believer prevent the tongue from being poisonous if according to these verses, it is a world of unrighteousness and a restless evil?
• Share an experience where the tongue has gotten you in trouble and what were the aftermath of that.