May 4th, 2011 by Kristi Stephens

Yesterday‘s post might not have been what you were expecting for a series about Biblical principles for our words and speech. But, the way we use God’s name reveals so much about our heart – and about the reverence, or lack thereof, with which we regard our holy God.

Our speaking always goes back to the heart.

Last night I sat and finalized my outline for topics that I’m planning to write on during this One Small Spark series. It seemed to burn my fingers as I typed it. So many difficult areas – each one pulling up memories of things I’ve said that I wish I had held back, words  that filled me with disgust even as I heard them come out of my mouth.

As we go throughout this month it might be might be easy to wallow in guilt, to beat yourself up for the unchangeable past. It might feel hopeless to change.

And, my dear friend, it is hopeless to do this on your own.

You can read through these posts and make lists for yourself of what you should say, what you should not say, how you should react or not react. You cannot will yourself into controlling your speech on your own – no man can tame the tongue.

So, even while we consider the power of our tongues and the sin we are so prone to, we must remember this: this is not about biting our tongues until they bleed. This is about surrending our hearts and asking the Lord to transform us from inside out.

“The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.”

Luke 6:45 (NIV)

Taming the tongue is not about the tongue. It is about the heart. We speak sinful things because we have sinful hearts. We speak angry words because we have prideful, angry hearts. We gossip because we have arrogant, self-righteous hearts. It’s always about the heart.

O Lord, consume us. Search our hearts and reveal to us the hidden sin that lurks there, bubbling out unbidden from our mouths and causing damage and pain around us. We cannot tame our tongues on our own. Change us from the inside out.

Want to follow this series and make sure you don’t miss a post? You can follow along easily by subscribing to this blog by email or in an RSS reader! All the posts in this series will be indexed here for future reference, as well. Bloggers, don’t forget that you are invited this Friday to come link up your posts about what you’ve been challenged with regarding your speech!