The Lord talks about our mouths, our words, and our tongues hundreds of times in the Bible! More often than not, God tells us to be careful with our words or to hold our tongues because He knows just how sinful they can be.
“He who guards his mouth preserves his life, But he who opens wide his lips shall have destruction.” -Proverbs 13:3
How many times have you wanted to say something but held your tongue because you knew it would be hurtful? How many times do you WISH you had?
It happens more often than we care to admit. The Lord knew that we would be angry enough or hurt enough or just not thinking enough about the other person that our words might get in the way of grace. If you've been on social media lately, you know just how much of the rhetoric fits this description.
It's imperative that we speak in grace, but it is often necessary NOT to speak because either our choice of words is not reflective of our Christian walk or our tone isn't.
If we guard our mouth, we can preserve life because sometimes a careless word can fuel anger and anger can escalate to the riots we've seen so often on the news during Covid.
If we open wide our lips, we can destroy: a heart, a soul, even a life. So, let us meditate on the words the Lord gives us in this (and many other scriptures) and heed its warning. Speak in truth, but speak in love. Speak in grace...and sometimes as it might be best...don't speak.