Tame the Tongue
James 3:5 compares the tongue to a ship's rudder or the bit places in a horse's mouth. Those items are used to control a ship and a large land animal. Our tongues also guide us and should be used with caution. Verses 7-8 tell us that every beast can be tamed, but no one can tame the tongue. We use our tongue on a contradictory basis to bless God and curse others made in the likeness of God (James 3:9). These things should not happen as they do not exemplify what it is to be a Christ follower.
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Giving Up Control
This may seem like a topic that I have exhausted or even just touched on last week in Friday Focus #7, but I wanted to share an idea from another perspective that can give more clarification.
Years ago I saw an image, I cannot remember where, that really gave some perspective to how we hang on to things too long. We hang on to the way we used to be. We hang on to relationships that make us feel good. We become co-dependent on the things of this world. We try to control too much. We don't see the beauty that exists when we give our life an d all parts of it to Christ. When we let go of the control and put it into the hands of Jesus as we walk the path that God has laid before us in His will, it changes EVERYTHING. You have NO IDEA what God has in store for us if we would just LET GO.
Proverbs 19:21 tells us that we can make as many plans as we want to, but God's plan will prevail. We may as well give in to His plan any way.
There is strength in giving in to God's will. His will won't fail us. It doesn't mean life will be perfect and we never have problems but you understand that God is teaching you something and letting you be used to teach others. Let go and let God.
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Give it UP!
We have all heard all types of saying that can classify as Christian rhetoric such as "Give It To God" and "Let Go and Let God." But, if you really look at what is deep in the meaning of what those phrases are, is it really rhetoric?
We try to control so much in our lives, but there is so much that we are not in control of. Have you ever tried to control someone? What about trying to control other aspects of life? What about worry? Isn't that what leads us to try to control things and people? We think that something bad will happen and we worry and try to fix it so it doesn't happen. Why are we so worried?
Worry is just a symptom, in my opinion, of not having any faith that God will take care of things. Our worry leads us to actions that we think are fixing things, but really our worries and actions from being worried are not God centered. We aren't taking things to God, we are taking matters into our own hands because we lack faith in God and patience in the process.
God wants us to cast our anxieties on Him (1 Peter 5:7). He doesn't want us walking around being balls of anxiety with two legs. No! He wants us to be at ease and to release those anxieties, stresses, pressures and worries to Him.
He has a plan for us and we are to not lean on how our own understanding, but trust in Him, acknowledge Him and He will make our paths straight (Proverbs 3:5-6).
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