Gentle Tongue

For Friday, January 20, 2006
Proverbs 15:4

A gentle tongue is a tree of life,
but perverseness in it breaks the spirit.

Seek a gentle tongue, which is another way of saying a gentle spirit. Seek a tongue/spirit that is a tree of life to the broken, the downtrodden, the person weighed down in suffering and/or in guilt. And this is the case of more people than you realize. It is often the case of the person who is acting arrogant, who may be on your case. People act out their tensions, often shifting those tensions on to others. A "soft answer turns away wrath" because its gentleness unarms the attacker. He wants a fight; instead he gets love; he gets a caring voice, and that alone can breathe life back into him. The heavy heart may express itself in poor work. More effective than the demanding tongue is the gentle tongue whose show of concern re-energizes the downcast worker.

The truth is that the gentle tongue is often more powerful than the harsh tongue in motivating better work. That, again, is due to wisdom. For the gentle tongue is not to be equated with mere mild-manneredness. It is the tongue that is under control of a wise mind and heart, which discern what is needed by the other person. The gentle tongue is possessed by one of sound mind and heart.

The perverse tongue breaks the spirit of others because it is out of control and is coming out of a person whose mind and spirit are not sound. Such a tongue wreaks havoc on both the recipient and the speaker. For it stirs up anger, pain, defenseness, and other unsound effects in the recipient, and it hardens the anger, pain, and other unsound elements in the speaker.

Pray for the Lord to guide your tongue today, that you may speak with a gentle tongue and promote healing and life. Don't miss the opportunities to speak words that express the gospel or flow out of the gospel, so that others may be drawn to it.

Being Watched

For Thursday, January 19, 2006
Proverbs 15:3

The eyes of the Lord are in every place,
keeping watch on the evil and the good.

This is either bad news or good news, depending on who you are and what you are doing. For the wicked, this is bad news. They can get away with nothing. God sees all; he cannot be deceived, cannot be mocked. For the righteous, this is good news. God sees all their good deeds; he sees their suffering. They are never alone.

For us Christians, this proverb serves to keep us both accountable and assured. Understand that there is no such thing as a private sin, not even a private thought. God sees all. Understand also that we are never in peril due to God not paying attention. He holds us in his hands all the time.

A couple of lessons we can gain from this. One, there is "no temptation that has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted byond your ability, but with the tempation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it" (1 Corinthians 10:13). God keeps his eyes on you, both to observe you faithfulness to him and to provide your way of escape. Two, God's grace is always with you as one who is righteous in Christ. He sees your righteous clothing. He sees your soul washed by the blood of his Son. And he watches you with love. Thus even your sin results in grace abounding all the more. For the wicked, even their "good" deeds condemn them, for they do not profess Jesus Christ as Lord.

As you go through the day, be aware and give thanks that God's eyes are upon you.

Commending Knowledge

For Wednesday, January 18, 2006
Proverbs 15:2

The tongue of the wise commends knowledge,
but the mouths of fools pour out folly.

The thought here is that the wise make good use of knowledge in their communication. Unwise use of knowledge is devastating and has a long history. From the childhood "friend" who shares that the other girls don't like you to the misuse of statistics and research, abuse of knowledge can wreak havoc. The wise, however, know what conclusions to draw from knowledge; they know how to communicate knowledge in such a way that it is received appropriately; they know when to keep silent, when they are casting pearls before swine and when they are providing a cold cup of water.

Fools, on the other hand, pour out folly that is all the more dangerous when the folly contains truth. Gossip that is true is more harmful than if it is false as is the inappropriate leaking of secrets. This is why there are several proverbs that speak of the wise man keeping silent. He is not withholding information that needs to be heard, but he is being careful to speak only when doing so promotes good.

How will you use your knowledge today? In a world in which knowledge (and communicating that knowledge) is at the touch of a keyboard, it is all the more important to "commend" knowledge rather than abuse it.

Soft Answer

For Tuesday, January 17, 2006
Proverbs 15:1

A soft answer turns away wrath,
but a harsh word stirs up anger.

I was talking to a Tenth Church prison guard about his line of work. He said that prisons are looking for guards more capable of calming down disruptive prisoners with speech rather than force. He noted that Lawrence Dow, a deacon noted for his gentle manner, would be the go-to person to deal with disruptive people in the church.

Force and harsh speech only breed resentment and stir up anger. Indeed, the harsh word will stir up anger where there is peace. Many Christians are guilty of stirring up anger both within the Christian community and outside it, because of the harsh manner in which they speak. It is not enough to value truth; one must value speaking the truth in love. It is not enough to have wisdom to know the answer; one must have the wisdom to know how to communicate the answer.

One can stir up anger by speaking the truth, as did Jesus. But most of us are guilty not of speaking the truth as needed, but of merely getting things off our chest or of wanting to put others down. Our zeal for striking a blow for truth is more motivated by a desire to strike a blow for our egos. We desire, not so much to win someone over to our side, as to shame that person.

If our goal is the welfare of our neighbor; if our motivation is love for our neighbor, we will speak wisely. Begin today, praying for the welfare of your neighbor; pray that your speech will be controled by your love for God and your neighbor. The best word you speak today may be your prayer to God to control your speech for his honor and your neighbor's good.

Winning the King's Favor

For Monday, January 16, 2006
Proverbs 14:35

A servant who deals wisely has the king's favor,
but his wrath falls on one who acts shamefuly.

The servant who has the king's favor deals wisely in two ways. The work that he carries out on behalf of the king is wisely done. He is efficient and fruitful in his labor; he makes wise decisions that benefit the king's welfare. Secondly, he is wise in his dealings with the king. He pays deference to him; he takes time to understanding the king's personality and adapt to it. Thus, the servant is conscientious in his labor for the king and in his relations with the king.

The shameful servant fails in one or (most likely) both. He may be dishonest or honest but thoughtless in his behavior. He may be extremely efficient and productive, but also arrogant and belittling of others. He may make wise decisions for the king, but then speak ill of him, even to him.

The point is that wisdom encompasses both the work accomplished and the manner in which the work is carried out. It is not only accomplishing the goal, but the way in which the goal is achieved that impacts how you will be regarded. If you want "the king's" favor, be he a boss, a teacher, even a spouse, act wisely in both work and relationships.

Now, let us give thanks for our King, who because already his favor was upon us, carried out his work of redemption, fulfilling both the labor necessary and in the spirit of absolute for his Father, so that the Father could say, "This is my Son with whom I am well pleased."