After finishing up a message like yesterday’s (James 3:1-12) you can always be assured that you will have to “put into practice what you preach.”  It was not ten minutes after the message that my tongue was tested and my mouth wanted to utter the first thing that popped into my head, but I put the speech breaks on and kept myself from uttering “hell-fire.”

Now it was not nearly as bad as I just made it sound, but if we want to establish the spiritual discipline of taming our tongue as James exhorts us in Chapter 3, then we will have to exercise our self-control in the both the trivial and the significant.

Since the greatest antidote for keeping the “salt water” from coming out of our mouths is to let it be filled with “fresh water,” then we have to fill our minds with that which produces life.  The old adage, “junk in, junk out” comes to my mind and I can attest that it is true.  So we must be diligent to fill our hearts and minds with things that are praiseworthy and noble.

This week will be one of the toughest times to implement our new found application of God’s Word.  You would think that it would be the easiest with it being Thanksgiving and all.  But as we are around family and friends and in some cases difficult situations, we will need God’s help in speaking life.  Start giving thanks to God now for all you have to be thankful for, and then let it overflow into your holiday get-togethers.

If the people you are around are not practicing the same life-giving speech then find a way to turn it around.  If all else fails and you feel the volcano about to erupt from deep inside, then do the next best thing, keep your mouth shut and just walk away. (Proverbs 13:3)  Maybe this Thanksgiving you will mature in Christ like you never have before, and for that we can all give Thanks.