THE DEADLY ARROW & THE SWEET BLESSING

THERE IS NOTHING WORSE THAN THE STING OF A HARSH WORD YET WE HAVE ALL FALLEN PREY TO EITHER BEING THE CULPRIT OR THE VICTIM OF SUCH ..... GOD SPEAKS OF THE TONGUE NINETY-THREE TIMES IN THE BIBLE .....MOST OF THE MENTION IS IN REFERENCE TO ITS ABILITY TO CAUSE DESTRUCTION.....AS IT IS REVEALED IN THE NEW TESTAMENT , "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 his 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 man , but no man can tame the tongue . It is a restless evil , full of deadly poison . With the tongue we praise our LORD and FATHER , and with it we curse men , who have been made in GOD'S likeness . Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing . My brothers , this should not be . Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring ? "JAMES 3:5-11 ..... WHEN WE LOOK AT THIS PASSAGE OF SCRIPTURE WE CANNOT IGNORE THE INTENSITY OF WHAT IS BEING SAID HERE ..... IT IS DIFFICULT TO GO THROUGH AN HOUR , LET ALONE AN ENTIRE DAY, WITHOUT FACING THE CHALLENGE OF KEEPING OUR TONGUE IN LINE ..... NO DOUBT AS HUMAN BEINGS WE HAVE MANY GOOD THINGS TO TALK ABOUT ..... WE COMPLIMENT EACH OTHER , TALK KINDLY OF ONE ANOTHER , GIVE GOOD REFERENCES FOR SOME AND SPEAK HIGHLY OF OTHERS ; BUT USING THE SAME BREATH WE BELITTLE , CURSE , GOSSIP AND SLANDER EACH OTHER WITH THE RISING AND THE SETTING OF EACH DAY'S SUN ..... AS THE OLD TESTAMENT STATES , " A deceitful tongue crushes the spirit . " PROVERBS 15:4 ..... AND YET THE OLD TESTAMENT SCRIPTURES REVEAL EVEN MORE ABOUT THIS SUBJECT WHEN IT SAYS , " Their tongue is a deadly arrow . " JEREMIAH 9:8 ..... WE WANT TO BELIEVE THAT WE CAN FIX THIS PROBLEM ON OUR OWN , HOWEVER THERE IS ONE THING THAT WILL ALWAYS GET IN OUR WAY ; THAT IS OUR SIN NATURE ..... BECAUSE THE HEART OF MAN IS DECEITFUL OUR TONGUES CANNOT BE TAMED WITHOUT THE HELP OF GOD HIMSELF ..... IF WE ARE TO PLEASE GOD AND GIVE HIM THE GLORY HE SO RIGHTFULLY DESERVES , WE MUST LEARN TO CONTROL OUR TONGUES ..... HUMBLY GOING BEFORE GOD ON A DAILY BASIS AND ASKING HIM TO ASSIST US IN THIS MATTER IS A NECESSITY ..... ASKING THE HOLY SPIRIT TO FILL OUR HEARTS AND MINDS IS THE BEGINNING OF HAVING A MORE SELF-CONTROLLED TONGUE ..... WHEN WE DO THIS HE WILL FILL US WITH HIS FRUITS AS IT IS SPOKEN OF IN THE NEW TESTAMENT , " But the fruit of the SPIRIT is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control . Against such things there is no law . " GALATIONS 5:22 ..... DAILY DEPENDENCE ON THE LORD JESUS , PRAYER AND STUDY OF HIS WORD WILL ENABLE US TO BECOME THE PERSON WHOM GOD HAS INTENDED US TO BE AND ALLOW US TO BRING A SWEET BLESSING TO THOSE AROUND US ..... THIS IS TURN WILL BEAR WITNESS TO THE FACT THAT OUR GOD TRULY IS AS HE SAYS , " I AM the ALPHA AND THE OMEGA ," says the LORD GOD , " who is , and who was and who is to come , the ALMIGHTY . '' REVELATION 1:8...............................Summer