"...no human being can tame the tongue"
-- James 3:8
The title of this blog entry also happens to be the title
of the sermon our pastor preached this past Sunday at Capitol Hill Baptist Church. The message was quite fitting in light of my recent Romanian Language learning endeavors and a certain lack of ability to tame my own tongue to make the correct sounds and phrases in Romanian. But on a deeper level, learning a new language is a truly humbling experience: it is humbling from an intellectual perspective, from a functional perspective and also from a spiritual perspective. Both of my parents are foreign language instructors and I remember something a student of theirs shared during an immersion program in Argentina. In response to an open question to the group about how learning spanish had affected her faith, this student said that lacking the ability to easily and freely speak had forced her to {inadvertently} "tame her tongue", because she had to
really think before she said anything. Adding a few extra seconds before the thought could be transformed into intelligible speech had prevented her from saying something too hastily, or perhaps had stopped her from saying something insensitive or hurtful.
In the book of
James (especially 3:1-12), there is a fairly serious warning about the possibility for evil that can stem from words...it can make "great boasts", is a "restless evil" and "out of the same mouth can come praise and cursing." There are also a number of Proverbs that touch on the subject:
A man of knowledge uses words with restraint,
And a man of understanding is even-tempered.
Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent,
And discerning if he holds his tongue.
An unfriendly man pursues selfish ends;
He defies all sound judgment.
A fool finds no pleasure in understanding,
But delights in airing his own opinions.
When wickedness comes, so does contempt,
And with shame comes disgrace.
The words of a man's mouth are deep waters,
But the fountain of wisdom is a bubbling brook.
It is not good to be partial tot he wicked
Or to deprive the innocent of justice.
A fool's lips bring him strife,
And his mouth invites a beating.
A fool's mouth is his undoing,
And his lips are a snare to his soul.
-- Proverbs 17:27 - 18:7
Reading some of these passages that reflect upon the nature of the spoken word has been a welcome reminder for me to be vigilant of what I say, especially as I prepare to enter into a new culture and learn a new language.
Since I am always doing crazy google image searches to insert clever photos into my blog posts {to make them more interesting}, you can click here to see the vast array of options available when one searches for
"taming the tongue".
