The Overwhelming Importance of Christians Thinking Before They Talk!

James 1:19.        Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath.

Awright friends, we’re down to Wednesday, our second wind day, and I hope that we all catch it, so that we can be reinvigorated and continue our good and most worthwhile work for Jesus! And all God’s people said a loud ‘Amen!’  Now, today, we’re going to listen to a most important and applicable poem for our social media and information times, from our One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin. 

And I know we’ve already shared this poem at least twice,  but it’s so important for these times that we need to share it again. It’s titled ‘A Quiet Tongue!’ And many, many more of us do need to have just that, because we’ve become such a talkative society, but sadly, most of the time, we don’t really know what we’re talking about. 

So please read with me. ‘Lord, a revealing fact began to surface today: I talk more than I listen. I seem to be thoroughly convinced That my ideas My inspiring experiences My bits of wisdom Are exactly what all my friends need. Too often I break into conversations Confident that my enlightened insight Will solve the predicament – Whatever it is. Obviously, I feel more comfortable When I’m expounding. But this morning at a Bible study I cringed when I read Your command In the first chapter of James. 

‘Don’t ever forget That it is best to listen much Speak little, and not become angry.” At first I wanted to run. But as the words kept battering away At my guilty heart I finally circled them with red ink. Now, Lord, please help me to obey them. Remind me daily, hourly That listening is a discipline And a discipline always costs. I know I must pay a price. The price for me Is a listening ear And quiet tongue.’  

And believe me in this talkative and oh so opinionated society many many of us need to pay that price of ‘a listening ear and a quiet tongue’ because we talk way too much and don’t listen as much as we ought to. Our social media situation has given us the options to say whatever we want, and ofttimes in secret too, even if we don’t know the true facts of the situation. And is it ever so annoying that nowadays, everyone has an opinion on everything! 

Meanwhile the facts that we base those opinions on are either, skewered, misdirectional, or even outright lies. And sadly, there’s little fact checking, even in the big media companies, and it’s become worse with the advent of AI, (Artificial Intelligence) which we’re boosting as a panacea for all that ails us. The problem with that though, is that Artificial Intelligence is a learned behaviour, it only knows what it’s been taught, and if it’s taught the wrong thing, then you’ll get wrong answers from it. It’s like they said of computers, garbage in, garbage out. 

Yes, you can only get out of these automated systems whatever you put into them. And we’ve already seen the great AI causing needless problems, through incorrect information, cheating on exams and papers, and being used for other nefarious activities and schemes. For anything a man makes, a man will contrive to us it for evil and ungodly purposes. So what’s the answer? 

It’s as James say in the Bible Promise for the poem. ‘Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath. For the wrath of man worketh not (does not produce) the righteousness of God.’ (James 1:19-20) And does our world ever need to quiet down, for there’s absolutely too much noise, too many distractions, for anyone to concentrate properly on what’s happening around them. That’s the enemy trying to drive us to drink with all the nonsense that’s currently happening in our world. 

But as believers in Christ Jesus, we are capable of turning off the noise and ignoring the other distractions, while basking in the peace and quiet of Christ, if we so desire. That’s because He’s given us His peace, (John 14:27; 16:33) but we have to seek it and pursue it, for it doesn’t just fall into our laps. It’s like Bruh David says in Psalm 34; ‘Keep thy tongue from evil, and thy lips from speaking guile (deceit). Depart from evil, and do good: seek peace, and pursue it.’ (Ps. 34:13-14) 

And I like how this commentary explains that last verse. ‘It is a biblical command from Psalm 34:14 that encourages an active, deliberate effort to cultivate peace, rather than passively waiting for it. It involves turning away from evil and doing good, and is a principle to be applied in various contexts, from personal relationships to interactions with the wider world.’ And oh how does our world need and crave peace in these war-like and strife-filled times. 

And we’re going to close with a couple of scriptures that all of us need to take to heart and put into practice. The first one comes from Psalm 39, where Bruh David talks about Control of the Tongue. ‘I said, I will take heed to my ways, that I sin not with my tongue: I will keep my mouth with a bridle (restrain my mouth), while the wicked is before me.’ (Ps. 39:1) Then in Psalm 141- Keep My Heart From Evil, Bruh David also makes this plea. ‘Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips.’ (Ps. 141:3) That should be a daily prayer for all believers. 

Oh friends, as this commentary tells us: ‘The prayer is a recognition of the power of the tongue. It is a request for divine help to control one’s speech, a plea to guard one’s mouth and avoid speaking in ways that are harmful, careless, or sinful. The prayer is an expression of a desire for self-control and wisdom in communication.’ Now, hopefully, we’ve gotten all of that written indelibly in our hearts, and will start practicing it right away. (smile) 

So let’s declare our Wednesday Wail, letting the whole world know of our wonderful position in Christ Jesus. As one strong and sincere voice: ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday! I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’ 

And there’s a codicil to that promise, which says;  all who endure to the very end with Jesus, will experience an even more glorious future. So please, let’s endure to the very end nuh, so that we can enjoy that greater than glorious future together! Much LOVE!

…being careful with our speech…is godly wisdom…especially in these ungodly times…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

A Warning for Believers to Carefully Watch Their Words and Think before They Speak!

James 1:19.          Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:

So it’s Thursday, our penultimate work day; one day closer to that blessed day of Friday. Thankfully, it might not be as hot as the last several days, but it’s also somewhat cloudy and windy. Guess you can’t always have it how you want it. (smile) Anyway, we have Jesus, and He’s all we need and will ever need! Give Him some thanks and praise for being the wonderful Lord and Saviour that He is!

Now, today,` we’ll look at a very interesting and very appropriate poem for these ungodly and evil times from our One Year Book of Bible Promises with writings by Ruth Harms Calkin. It’s titled ‘A Quiet Tongue.’ And for once, I’m sure that I’ve shared it before, (smile) but with so much senseless and unnecessary talking that’s bombarding us today from all different angles and places, I believe it’s something we should look at again.

So please read with me. ‘Lord, a revealing fact Began to surface today: I talk more than I listen. I seem to be thoroughly convinced That my ideas My inspiring experiences My bits of wisdom Are exactly what all my friends need. Too often I break into conversations Confident that my enlightened insight Will solve the predicament – Whatever it is. Obviously, I feel more comfortable when I’m expounding.

But this morning at a Bible study I cringed when I read Your command In the first chapter of James: “Don’t ever forget That it is best to listen much Speak little, and not become angry.” At first I wanted to run. But as the words kept battering away At my guilty heart I finally circled them with red ink. Now, Lord, please help me to obey them. Remind me daily, hourly That listening is a discipline And a discipline always costs. I know I must pay a price. The price for me Is a listening ear And a quiet tongue.’

Oh friends those words ring so true for so many of us although we try to deny it. In these times of so many new communication methods, we’re all trying to talk at the same time, thus we’re unfortunately only creating a cacophony of noise. That’s a harsh discordant mixture of sounds, from which not much sense can be made. I know that I’m guilty of talking too much, although I try not to. I’ve asked the Lord several times like Bruh David does in Psalm 141:3. ‘Set a watch (guard), O Lord, before my mouth; keep the door (keep watch over the door) of my lips.’ But I don’t think He’s listening, for I still talk too much. (smile)

And this commentary explains that ‘it is a prayer for self-control, specifically in speech. It’s a request for divine assistance in moderating one’s words, preventing harmful or inappropriate language. It highlights the power of words and the importance of using them responsibly.’ And do we ever need it badly in this over talkative society, especially with all the many social media platforms we have  where talk is cheap but wisdom and discernment are sadly lacking.

Yes my people many of us need to make that prayer, entrusting the guarding of our lips to God, for we open our mouths way too much and talk unnecessarily about things we don’t know. Our society is suffering from a surfeit, an excess or overabundance of opinions and idle chatter, and unfortunately most of it is ungodly and evil stuff. And there are several places in the Bible where it specifically talks about keeping one’s mouth shut as much as possible. Cousin Sol alone has three examples in Proverbs.

The first says: ‘He that keepeth (guards) his mouth keepeth (preserves) his life: but he that openeth wide his lips shall have destruction.’ (Prov. 13:2) And the second warning on talking too much tells us: ‘Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from trouble.’ (Prov. 21:23) And the third is one that we hear very often, and  don’t pay much attention to, but it is very relevant to our faith.. It says: ‘Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that LOVE it shall eat the fruit thereof.’ (Prov. 18:21)

And is that ever the gospel truth! For the Lord spoke everything but mankind into existence, and blessings or curses from our mouth are very powerful. Our words, be they good or bad, are very powerful my brethren, and I plead with us to take those three warnings to heart and sincerely ask the Lord to help us put them into action in our lives, for so many of us are getting in serious trouble because of our ‘chatty chatty’ lips.

Then there’s this other warning verse from James, that’s the Bible Promise verse for our poem today. In speaking about Hearers and Doers of the Word, he solemnly advises: ‘Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: For the wrath of man worketh not (does not produce) the righteousness of God.’ (James 1:19-20) And we can see the indisputable truth in those words for our world has become so filled with angry people that godliness is like searching for a needle in a haystack.

So friends, if we want to reduce the anger and therefore the strife and all the negative things in our world, the fist thing we need to do is watch what we say, and then say as little as possible. For remember what Cousin Sol tells us again in Proverbs: ‘Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace (keeps silent), is counted (considered) wise: and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding.’ (Prov. 17:28) And it’s not like we don’t have the wherewithal to do it, for God has given us all that we need to live godly down here, but we’re just too lazy and/or too rebellious to do it.

He’s even generously bestowed on us what we call our Thursday Blessings; undeserved blessings to do His earthly work. That means we have no grounds whatsoever for complaints. So let’s be wise and declare those blessings and thus activate them right now. As one strong and sincere voice: ‘I declare that I am blessed with God’s supernatural wisdom and receive clear direction for my life! I declare today that I am blessed with creativity, courage, talent and abundance! I am blessed with a strong will, self-control and self-discipline!

I am blessed with a great family, good friends, good health, faith, favour and fulfillment! I am blessed with success, supernatural strength, promotion and divine protection! I am blessed with a compassionate heart and a positive outlook on life! I declare that any curse or negative word that’s ever been spoken over me is broken right now in the name of Jesus! I declare that everything I put my hands to, will prosper and succeed! I declare it today and every day! Amen!’ 

And having made those declarations (steups!!!) we’re now duty bound to go out and use those blessings on behalf of others, just as generously as the Lord shared them with us! Much LOVE!

…words are one of our most powerful tools…be careful how we use them…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

Today’s Scrip-Bit   17 April 2024 Psalm 141:3.

Psalm 141:3.       Set a watch (guard), O Lord, before my mouth; keep (watch over) the door of my lips.

And just like that, the sunshine has disappeared, and a rainy day has foisted itself upon us. But because we have Jesus, we roll right along with whatever punch the world, or the devil chooses to throw at us! And helping us to do so are some more of those scriptural tidbits we call acclamations, like this one: ‘My God will supply all of my needs through His riches in glory through Christ our Lord and Saviour!’ (Phil. 4:19) And indeed He will, if we live the life He desires of us. And this one is oh so necessary for so many of us: ‘Set a watch (guard), O Lord, before my mouth; keep (watch over) the door of my lips.’ (Ps. 141:3) 

Yes friends, in this talkative, lying, fraudulent, gossipy world, believers most definitely need to watch what they say, as our words can get us in very serious trouble. Remember what Cousin Sol says in Proverbs: ‘Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that LOVE it shall eat the fruit thereof.’ (Prov. 18:21) Oh my fellow believers that’s the gospel truth, those of us who LOVE to blabber will certainly suffer for it. Remember too that old saying, you shall eat those words? And all of us have seen it come to pass in our lives when we’ve spoken some unkind or unnecessary words. 

And again, Cousin Sol reminds us in Proverbs: ‘He that keepeth (guards) his mouth keepeth (preserves) his life: but he that openeth wide his lips shall have destruction.’ (Prov. 13:3) And no, it’s not easy to control our tongue, for as James so wisely discourses: ‘And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members; that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature (our existence); and it is set on fire of hell.’ (James 3:6) 

And as the scholars explain: ‘The tongue is a system (world) of iniquity that sets on fire the whole course of life, and is even set on fire by Satan (cf. 3:15) That means the tongue causes a whole lot of problems in our individual, lives as well as our world. What causes wars and rumours of wars, etc. etc. talk and the lawlessness of our tongues. And that reference above there is important enough for us to take it up from verse 13. James writes, concerning earthly and heavenly wisdom: ‘Who is a wise man and endued with knowledge (has understanding) among you? let him shew out of a good conversation (conduct) his works with meekness of wisdom (that his works are done with meekness of wisdom). 

But if ye have bitter envying and strife (self-seeking) in your hearts, glory not (don’t boast), and lie not against the truth. This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish (demonic). For where envying and strife is (self-seeking exist), there is confusion and every evil work. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated (willing to yield), full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.’ (James 3:13-18) 

Yes my fellow saints, our tongues can be used for good or evil, but it all depends on which one we choose to use them for. Yuh see what happens when we allow Beelzebub to use our tongues; strife and envying, bitterness and boasting take place. But when we allow the Lord to set a watch upon our lips, His heavenly wisdom comes down to us and we seek peace, goodness, righteousness without partiality or hypocrisy. Now isn’t that the better way? It certainly is! But unfortunately in this current version of our world, one that’s so evil and ungodly, Satan has the upper hand when coming to the tongue, for so many lies, deceitful practices, strife, hypocrisy and partiality are present that it’s brought our world into a total scene of chaos and disaster. 

And social media and the new darling of the public AI (Artificial Intelligence) are just encouraging the lies and misdirection that’s already so widespread on the earth. Then, unfortunately, those of us who know better, Christians, are not pulling our weight, not helping to reduce the garbage that’s circulating in our world, but some of us even add to it by spreading gossip and stories that we know nothing about, instead of trying to limit the foolishness that’s been so easily spread abroad, and also flourishes, or as the word says, goes viral within seconds. 

Oh my people, my people, we have a big task ahead of us, trying to sow peace and righteousness on the earth, and we might never accomplish it until Jesus returns, but the important thing is that we try; we try to turn things around as best we can. But therein lies the problem, not enough of us are willing to try. We just want to sit back and enjoy the fruits, the entitlement that we can get from doing nothing. And to a certain point I can understand that reasoning, because trying to make a positive difference means hard work, sacrifices and other stuff our flesh detests. 

But what about our spirits eh? What about the power, wisdom and LOVE we have from our great God? What about the sacrifices our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ made for us? Are we just going to allow them to be in vain? I certainly hope not. That’s why I’m pleading with us to begin making a difference, strengthening our backbones so that we can sacrifice some of our pleasure and leisure to fight the good fight of peace and righteousness in Jesus’ name. Now it’s up to us to get out into the world and be shining beacons of light and salty and tasty elements of peace and righteousness, as Jesus desires and expects of us. Remember, that’s our bounden duty as disciples of Christ! 

Now, let’s go home declaring (awright!!!) our Wednesday Wail, letting the whole world know of our amazing and invincible and position in Christ Jesus. as one strong and sincere voice: ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday! I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’ 

And for good measure, if we endure right down to the very end with Jesus, then that future will be even more glorious than we can ever ask or imagine. So let’s be wise and plan to meet at the very end nuh, so that we can enjoy that glorious future together! Much LOVE!

…a word fitly spoken (spoken at the right time)…is like apples of gold…in pictures (settings) of silver…(a timely and fitting word is precious and pleasing)…(Prov. 25:11)

 Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ

Today’s Scrip-Bit 2 January 2021 Psalm 19:14.

Psalm 19:14.     ​Let the words of my mouth, and the meditations of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength (my rock), and my redeemer.

Another snow-filled morning…but who’s counting or bothering eh? Certainly not me, or any of those Jesus filled believers who have to trudge out and about in it! (smile) That’s because with Jesus both in us and by our side we will not fear, regardless of what the world and its evil self choses to throw against us. And all of God’s children said a loud and proud: ‘Praise the Lord for His goodness and strength to the children of men!’ And that’s for sure friends, the Lord deserves much more thanks than we give Him. 

But remember, we promised to change that for this new year of 2021. Yes, this blessed year of 2021, we going to be sincerely singing the praises of our Lord and Saviour as we diligently carry out His work! We going to rise up and be who we ought to be; powerful and authoritative people of God, but filled with peace, LOVE, thanks, grace, mercy and all the other fruits of the Spirit! 

Wow! Beware evil world, Christ’s mighty army is coming against you this year, we going to be fighting you tooth and nail, right down to the wire, until your evil carcass lies wasted, lies a rotting in Hades! What powerful sentiments and promises friends. I do hope we keep them. (smile) 

Now, let’s see what our friend Anselm had to tell us this past week, as he aspires to inspire us for a better tomorrow. And thank the Lord, there is no preface to deal with this week! (smile) Yes it’s somewhat different this week. And it unfurls with this greeting and word of advice: ‘There are greater things to be achieved in every new year, and each and everyone must prepare themselves to be great, not by words of the mouth, but by a lot of sacrifices. Do stay safe.’ 

Ah precious people of God, our friend Anselm hit the nail on the head right there! Much talking must stop and be replaced by much action, with many sacrifices, cause that’s the example our Leader, Jesus set us. All of us want to be great, but we don’t want to expend the labour, the blood, sweat and tears it takes to do it. So we just talk up a storm, but do nothing worthwhile about it, because we just plain scared or lazy or whatever to truly confront the world in Jesus’ name. 

Remember Jesus told us not to fear so often that it ought to be seared into our minds, souls, bodies and spirits. And furthermore, He informed us that there would be trouble in the world but He had already conquered it, so we should be cheerful and just keep on doing what we ought to, because He would always be with us, right down to the very end of the age! That’s means, the world and its evil rulers can’t conquer us if we stand up strong with Jesus all around us, as He’s promised. 

So then, here’s this most interesting and very worthy advice from our friend Anselm. ‘We spend January 1st walking through our lives, room by room, drawing up a list of work to be done, cracks to be patched. Maybe this year, to balance the list, we ought to walk through the rooms of our lives… not looking for flaws, but for potential.’ 

And isn’t that the gospel truth friends? We always seem to look for the bad parts in us, but seldom the good ones. We do have good parts yuh know, parts filled with lots of potential that God placed there for us to work on and fulfill our destiny and His purpose for our lives. Unfortunately though, we don’t pay sufficient attention to that aspect of our lives. 

And per Anselm, here are some ‘Things to think about for 2021:’ And the first bit of advice is ‘Talk less; listen more;’ Brother! Is that ever appropriate for many of us, including me. I even promised my family that I wouldn’t talk as much as I do. So there you see, I’m already on the right track. Hope I can fulfill that promise though, because it’s not an easy one to keep, but we can do it, if we cry out to God for help, like Bruh David did: ‘Set a watch (guard), O Lord, before my mouth; keep (watch over) the door of my lips. Incline not my heart to any evil thing, to practise wicked works with men that work iniquity: and let me not eat of their dainties (delicacies).’ (Ps. 141:3-4) 

And if we’re sincere about it, the Lord will certainly hear our prayer and help us. Or we can also plead like Bruh David in Psalm 19: ‘Let the words of my mouth, and the meditations of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength (my rock), and my redeemer.’ (Ps. 19:14) Yes friends, we know we’re maturing when our words and the motives of our hearts are not displeasing to our heavenly Father. 

But moving right along, Anselm then tells us: ‘Remind yourself you are not the General Manager of the Universe;’ Now that’s certainly interesting because too many of us believe that we run the world; that it should run like we say or think. But for our information, that’s God’s job! We’re just a li’l speck in the great plan He has for His universe! So let’s not go messing with it nuh, as though it’s ours to set straight, for the Lord doesn’t take kindly to others trying to run His business. (smile) Let’s just concentrate on the li’l portion He gave us to look after nuh. We not even doing that properly, but we want to look after the world. (smile) 

And in the process, Anselm informs us that another useful endeavour would be to ‘Sit on your ego;’ And oh, do we ever need to do that in this ego driven, celebrity worshipping world of ours, where every li’l knuckle head – not the word I really wanted to use – (smile) thinks, believes and acts like a superstar. Steups! But fortunately, many of them flame out just as quickly as they catch fire. Oh friends, until we realize that there’s ONLY ONE SUPERSTAR in this universe, JESUS, and start worshipping Him and not our fellow weak, mortal, frail and finite man, our lives won’t be worth a whole lot! 

Now according to Anselm, we ought to also ‘Take one day at a time;’ And that’s wise advice, since Jesus told us the same thing long ago. ‘Take therefore no thought for (don’t worry about) the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil (trouble) thereof.’ (Matt. 6:34) Yeh, we can make some plans, with God ‘s help, but if we don’t look after today, who says we’ll be around to see tomorrow eh? 

And while we’re doing that, it would also be wise to ‘Separate worries from concerns. If a situation is a concern, find out what God would have you to do and let go of the anxiety. If you can’t do anything about a situation, forget it;’ Absolute words of wisdom my brethren! Brother Anselm’s been preaching to us today! (smile) I would like to add one thing to that though, if you can’t do anything about the situation, but it’s real important, then give it to God, let Him hold it for you, while He works on it. We don’t need to hold it if we can’t fix it. Just give it to the Master Fixer. 

And last but not least, possibly most important, Anselm advises us to ‘PRAY!’ Ah mih people, that is indeed the crowning glory of all we do! As Bruh Paul told the Thessalonians: ‘Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.’ (1 Thess. 5:16-18) And that is indeed God’s will for His people! 

Then Anselm ends by wishing a ‘Happy New Year to all my friends and family.’ And I wish the same for all of us my precious saints in Christ! Let’s make 2021 a banner year for the church and people of Christ! Much LOVE!

…if you truly believe…then you ought to rejoice…pray…and give plenty thanks…