“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.”   James 3:9-10

Genesis 2:7 says, “The Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.”

In this verse, we experience the first breath of man. It was breathed directly from the mouth of God. So, how can we use the mouths that God gave breath for anything other than glorifying Him?

As we all know, it is so very easy to use our mouths, or tongues, as a weapon. The very tool God used to give us breath is the same tool He gave us to sing His praises. But too often, we use this weapon to speak negatively about others, to judge their appearance or actions, or to gossip.

Several years ago I was privileged to hear a pastor preach from James 3. He spoke of all the ways we can sabotage relationships, new and old, just by the way we speak to or gossip with one another. He gave us an acrostic to use in our daily walk with the Lord.

He encouraged us to ask these questions to help you to THINK before you speak:

T– Is it True?

H– Does it Honor the person you are speaking with or about?

I-Does it Inspire someone?

N– Is it Necessary?

K– Is it Kind?

Lord God, help me to THINK before I speak to use my tongue and mouth to praise and glorify your Holy name. May the words I speak be true, honoring, inspiring, necessary and kind. May I learn to use my words to build up others, that they may be beneficial to all that listen.

Do you have trouble with Thinking before you speak? What have you done to help you be more glorifying or encouraging with your words?