Wearisome Words

Bible Reading:  Malachi 2:11-17

Key Verse: Verse 17 – “Ye have wearied the LORD with your words. Yet ye say, Wherein have we wearied him? When ye say, Every one that doeth evil is good in the sight of the LORD, and he delighteth in them; or, Where is the God of judgment?”

Key Words: wearied the LORD with your words

The priests were wearisome with their words to the Lord.  They were calling evil good and telling people God would delight in their evil.  These were wearisome words.

The word wearied in our text carries the idea of annoyingly exhaustive.

There is a great illustration of this found in Chalk Talk.  “It happens every time the teacher calls a student to the chalkboard to solve a problem. Someone holds the chalk wrong and sends chills up and down the spines of everyone in the class with that familiar classroom torture technique: “squeaky chalk.”

Why does a piece of chalk produce that hideous squeal? According to the book, The Flying Circus of Physics (With Answers), squealing chalk results from the phenomenon of “stick and slip.” Incorrectly held chalk actually sticks to the blackboard. But when the writer bends the chalk enough, it suddenly slips and vibrates, sporadically striking the chalkboard and producing that squeal we hear. As the vibrations decrease, the friction between the chalk and the board increases until the chalk sticks again and the torture begins once more. 

Annoyingly exhaustive!!  I wonder if we ever become that way with our words. Hopefully not!!

                                                                                             Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do:

✞ Make sure your words are never wearisome to God or others.

Good Words

Bible Reading:  I Kings 12:1-11

Key Verse: Verse 7 – “And they spake unto him, saying, If thou wilt be a servant unto this people this day, and wilt serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be thy servants for ever.”

Key Words: speak good words

We know Rehoboam didn’t speak good words and, as a result, the people rebelled (verse 19).

It’s never wrong to do right.  We are told in Galatians 6:10, “As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.”

Good is always associated with God.  In Genesis chapter 1 after God saw each of His creation, He said it was good.

In Mark 10:18, Jesus asked the rich man, “Why callest thou me good? There is none good but one, that is, God.”

We are told in Galatians 5:22 that one of the fruits of the Spirit is goodness.

One of the ways I know that I am walking in the Spirit is that I treat people with goodness, and I speak of them for good.  Let me hasten to add, that doesn’t always mean people like what we say or do. 

My dad used to say before he would spank me, “Now, this is for your good.”  I must admit at the time, I didn’t see it that way; but looking back on it, he, as usual, was right.

Finding good words to say about some people can be a difficult task. Reminds me of a humorous story that illustrates the point:  It seems that St. Peter and the Devil had an agreement to share the costs of maintaining the fence between Heaven and Hell. One weekend there was a bit of a brawl in Hell that got out of hand, and part of the fence was smashed. It went unfixed for weeks and St. Peter approached the Devil about mending it. Nothing happened over the period of a month. Finally, in exasperation, St. Peter said he would sue the Devil if he didn’t pay up. “Oh” retorted the Devil, “and where are you going to find a lawyer in heaven?”

So it is with some people…good words are hard to come by.

 

                                                                                        Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do:

✞ Find something good to say about others, and you will find they will change their attitude about you

Devouring Words

Bible Reading:  Psalm 52

Key Verse: Verse 4   – “Thou lovest all devouring words, O thou deceitful tongue.”

Key Words: devouring words

You can read the story of David and Doeg in I Samuel 22.

David describes the person with a devouring tongue as being mischievous (verse 1), a person with sharp (cutting) words (verse 2), deceitful (verse 2), someone who loves evil (verse 3), someone who loves a lie more than the truth (verse 3).

Devouring is more than eating; it is ravenous, beastly.  Have you ever seen sharks when they smell blood, or wild dogs in Africa on a hunt? That’s devouring.

When I was young, people would drop off their unwanted dogs in our neighborhood. Those dogs would pretty much do anything for food.  I remember adopting one of these dogs. Of course, I did fail to tell my parents about the adoption. Well, anyway, that’s another story.  I decided that the skinny fellow needed food so I gathered some together and put it in a bowl in the back yard and watched as he “devoured” the food.  He didn’t just eat; he growled and hissed and chomped and bit and foamed at the mouth.  He intended to leave nothing behind. So it is with devouring words.  They cut and tear; they bruise and destroy.  The person with devouring words is at war and their weapon is not an M-K but words…devouring words; and they will not be content until they see their prey destroyed or consumed.  How animalistic!  How depraved!

 

                                                                                                        Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do:

✞ Remember, not only animals can be wild beasts.  Avoid devouring humans.

Feigned Words

Bible Reading: II Peter 2:1-10

Key Verse: Verse 3 – “And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not.”

Key Words: feigned words 

Three quick tidbits: 1) I know we just read II Peter yesterday; 2) I know repetition is one of the best forms of learning; and 3) I just love having three points.

The word feign in our text means to be plastic, artificial, not real.  The words these false teachers share are for the sole purpose of making merchandise of the hearers.  Those who hear them, follow them, support them, fail to understand that they are saying what their constituents want to hear for their personal gain.

We, as preachers of the gospel, are told to preach the word, and while we are to exhort, we are also to reprove and rebuke.

It is imperative that we know who we are following. The American Banking Association in their training program to help tellers never look at a counterfeit bill. All they do hour after hour, day after day, is handle authentic currency until they are so familiar with the true bill that they cannot possibly be fooled with the false.  This is the way we should be with the Word of God.

Don’t be fooled by feigned words.  Ask for God’s guidance. Follow God, not man.

 

                                                                                                Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do: 

✞ Don’t be fooled by feigned words or you’ll become someone’s merchandise.

Swelling Words

Bible Reading: II Peter 2

Key Verse: Verse 18 - “For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error.”

Key Words: swelling words

In order to get the full impact of the key verse, three things are necessary.  First, we must know who is being written about, and that is false teachers. Secondly, we must read the entire chapter. Thirdly, we must understand the word swelling. It means to bloat up or expand. These false teachers are speaking words which do not grow or mature a person spiritually. They simply bloat them.

Peter is warning people to be cautious of false teachers that bloat you up but do so for their personal gain. It is important to be able to identify these false teachers (see verses 1 and 2) in order to both avoid them and save yourself from their heresy.

A Chinese boy who wanted to learn about jade went to study with a talented old teacher. This gentle man put a piece of the precious stone into his hand and told him to hold it tight. Then he began to talk of philosophy, men, women, the sun and almost everything under it. After an hour he took back the stone and sent the boy home. The procedure was repeated for several weeks. The boy became frustrated. When would he be told about the jade? He was too polite, however, to question the wisdom of his venerable teacher. Then one day, when the old man put a stone into his hands, the boy cried out instinctively, 'That's not jade!'" 

“And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”  John 8:32.

 

                                                                                                    Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do:

✞ Live for truth, not personal gratification.

Opposing Words

Bible Reading: II Timothy 4:14-22

Key Verse: Verse 15 – “Of whom be thou ware also; for he hath greatly withstood our words.”

Key Words: greatly withstood our words

There were those such as Demetrius, the silversmith, and Alexander, the coppersmith, who built idols to worship.  It was their livelihood. So when Paul preached against false gods and idols, he stirred up those whose livelihood depended on such things.  As a result, they began to oppose his words and attempted to have Paul put to death. Words may not kill us physically, but they can still do much damage.

In his first season with the Brooklyn Dodgers, Jackie Robinson, the first black man to play Major League baseball, faced venom nearly everywhere he traveled – fastballs at his head, spikings on the bases, brutal epithets from the opposing dugouts and from the crowds.  During one game in Boston, the taunts and racial slurs seemed to reach a peak.  In the midst of this, another Dodger, a Southern white player named Pee Wee Reese, called timeout.  He walked over, put his arm around Robinson’s shoulder and just stood there. The heckling stopped, but Robinson, while always remembering what Pee Wee did for him, never forgot what Boston fans did to him.  Opposing words can hurt; remember that the next time you want to use them.

                                                                                                     Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do: 

✞ Make your words soft and tender in case you have to eat them.

Unprofitable Words

Bible Reading: II Timothy 2:1-14

Key Verse: Verse 14 – “Of these things put them in remembrance, charging them before the Lord that they strive not about words to no profit, but to the subverting of the hearers.”

Key Words: they strive not about words to no profit

We live in a “gain” society. We don’t invest to lose; we invest to gain, to be profitable.  We understand that, especially when it comes to money.

A small businessman, who had immigrated to this country, kept his accounts payable in a cigar box, his accounts receivable on a spindle, and his cash in the cash register. 

"I don't see how you can run your business this way," said his son. "How do you know what your profits are?" 

"Son", replied the businessman, "when I got off the boat, I had only 36 cents and the pants I was wearing. Today your sister is an art teacher, your brother is a doctor, and you are an accountant. I have a car, a house, and a good business. Everything is paid for. 

"Just add it all up, subtract 36 cents and the pants, and there's your profit." 

Why can’t we get it when it comes to our words? Each word we share either gains us respect or loses us respect; we either gain integrity or lose integrity. So the next time you start to say something, remember…will it profit me or become a deficit to me?  Something to consider, isn’t it?

 

                                                                                                        Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do:  

✞ Remember, too many deficits will bankrupt your testimony.

Sound Words

Bible Reading: II Timothy 1

Key Verse: Verse 13 – “Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.”

Key Words: sound words

God’s Word is sound, healthy, of full strength.  You can trust God’s Word.

Many of us would agree with Peter when he says that parts of Paul’s letters are hard to understand! And there are difficulties and apparent discrepancies in other parts of the Bible too. On this matter of discrepancies, I remember reading something written by an old seventeenth-century Puritan named William Bridge. He said that harping on discrepancies shows a very bad heart, adding: “For a Godly man, it should be as it was with Moses. When a Godly man sees the Bible and secular data apparently at odds, well, he does as Moses did when he saw an Egyptian fighting an Israelite: he kills the Egyptian. He discounts the secular testimony, knowing God’s Word to be true. But when he sees an apparent inconsistency between two passages of Scripture, he does as Moses did when he found two Israelites quarreling: he tries to reconcile them. He says, ‘Aha, these are brethren, I must make peace between them.’ And that’s what the Godly man does.”

God’s Word is sound. It has withstood every challenge and false charge against it. That is why it is called sound (hearty, solid). You can trust it!

 

                                                                                                          Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do:

✞ When all else fails, God’s Word remains sound!  Trust it.

Slang Words

Bible Reading:  Colossians 4:1-9

Key Verse: Verse  6  – “Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.”

Key Words: Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt

Do you use profanity?  Must you resort to slang words to impress others?  Are you guilty of using those little semi-curses commonly heard today – words like “darn,” “golly,” “gee,” “heck,” which are disguised forms of something much worse?  Their use shows a lack of refinement and reveals a quality that is unbecoming to a Christian.  The language of a spirit-filled believer should always be “with grace.”

Many people also engage in the irreverent use of the names of Bible characters and spiritual terms.  This denotes disrespect for God’s Word. How disgusting to listen to people punctuate their conversations with minced oaths! In their attempt to appear refined, they use expressions like “Good Heavens,” “Good Lord,” and other thoughtless phrases. But what about the worst offense of all – taking the Lord’s name in vain? Whenever we hear that, we must not remain silent.

A Godly farmer was attending a meeting of an agricultural society. Some of the men were freely using the words, “devil,” and “hell.”  He felt uneasy but said nothing.  Then someone said, “Jesus Christ!”  Immediately the farmer spoke up, “Sir, you may speak lightly of YOUR master, but when you take MY Master’s name in vain, I object!  Talk about your master, the devil, if you want to, but please leave my Lord out of it.”

To remain silent when someone uses God’s name in vain is sin (Leviticus 5:1). Today’s text is God’s answer to all forms of “slanguage.”

 

                                                                                                                Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do: 

✞ Your words are food for another’s soul, make sure you season it with grace.

Vain Words

Bible Reading:  Ephesians 5:1-10

Key Verse: Verse 6 – “ Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.”

Key Words: Let no man deceive you with vain words

 

The term vain words carry the idea of empty promises.

Satan promises the best, but pays with the worst; he promises honor and pays with disgrace; he promises pleasure and pays with pain; he promises profit and pays with loss; he promises life and pays with death. ~ Lou Nicholes

The saloon is a liar.  It promises good cheer and sends sorrow.  It promises prosperity and sends adversity.  It promises happiness and sends misery.  It is God’s worst enemy and the devil’s best friend. ~ Billy Sunday

But God’s promises are promises you can count on!

Livingstone, in Africa, came to the Zambezi, and wanted to cross. The chief had been mistreated by some treacherous trader and had vowed to kill the next white man who came across. Livingstone, by his fluttering candle, turned to the Bible and read, as always, his evening passage, coming to the promise, “Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world” (Matthew 28:20). Closing the Book, he said, “It is the word of a gentleman of the strictest and most sacred honor; I will not flee.” He did not flee and was used mightily by God in Central Africa.

The old evangelist of years gone by, Vance Havner, once said, “There are approximately 8,810 promises in the entire Bible.  In the Old Testament there are 7,706 and in the New Testament there are 1,104 wonderful promises.  Deuteronomy 28 has 133 promises, which is more than any other chapter in the Bible.  We’re sitting on the premises when we ought to be standing on the promises!”

 

                                                                                                Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do: 

✞ Man may let you down; God never will.

Words Of Gossip Or Gospel?

Bible Reading: I Corinthians 15:1-20

Key Verse: Verse 1 – “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;”

Key Words: the gospel which I preached unto you

Are you aware that the word gossip is not found in the Word of God? But its meaning has a spiritual significance, or maybe I should say a lack of spiritual significance.  The word gossip comes from the old English god-sibb. The word god is a false god and the word sibb means akin to, so then a gossiper would be someone who is akin to a false god.  Now, isn’t that interesting?!!

After three years of research, Indiana University Sociologist Donna Eder, identified an important dynamic involved in gossip.  Eder discovered that the initial negative statement was not the starting point for gossip. The critical turning point was found in the response to the initial statement.  “She’s a snob” is not the starting point of gossip.  It is when someone else agrees that “She’s a snob” that the gossip first begins. Eder found that the key is whether or not a negative statement is seconded.  If a second is provided, then gossip ensues. If the second is not provided, then the conversation changes directions. No one ever challenged an evaluation that had been seconded. Now no matter how cutting the opening remark, an immediate quibble from a listener could send the talk into a less critical direction.

The moral of all this is “gossip isn’t any fun if you aren’t willing to agree.”  Moral number two: we have the power either to incite or defuse gossip.

But primarily I need to know that when I gossip, I’m akin to a false god and helping to promote the work of Satan.  So let’s not gossip, but rather let us spread the gospel.  Amen! 

 

                                                                                                Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do: 

✞ Let’s spread the gospel, not the gossip.

Enticing Words

Bible Reading: I Corinthians 2:1-10

Key Verse: Verse 4 – “And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power:”

Key Words: enticing words

Any message should be not with enticing words but with the power of God.

Paul said in Colossians 2:4, And this I say, lest any man should beguile you with enticing words. He also says in verse 8, Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.  

Ronnie Miller, in an article entitled “Enticing Words,” says…

“Today we can pick and choose where we want to go and hear the Word of God just like going to the grocery store and shopping for our needs. So, let's look at what you might find.

“You can shop for all kinds of churches and even shop for the whole family. You can pick up pain killers such as Aspirin or Tylenol. It's a church that gives you a quick fix so you can make it through another week or until Wednesday night and take another dose to make it to the next service.

“Why not go down the Greeting Card isle and pick up a church where you meet with all your friends and relatives and talk about what a good time we have together and we sure are glad we don't have any outsiders to interrupt our fellowship that we have with each other.  After all this is our church. 

“Let's make sure we don't forget to go down the ‘Personal Needs’ isle and get a church like some of the fancy body wash and pick up some bath oil.  It makes us feel so good about ourselves and lasts for days. It feels good and I deserve every moment of self-pleasure. I don't know why everyone is not as clean as we are.

“Oh my goodness! Don't forget the kids! Run over to the magazine rack and pick out a great entertainment church to keep them occupied and pick up some CD's that have that upbeat music.  I don't understand it but, they seem to enjoy it.  We will join in and pretend we understand. We will jump up and down to the beat, it will be fun, don't you think?

“In the magazine rack is another church.  It is wisdom, theology and philosophy.  The preacher there is highly educated with many years of college and seminary training.  

But, what comes out of all that knowledge?

“I heard of a theologian who used big words and tried to be very deep in his thinking.  He had talked to a group for about half an hour.  A man walked up to the group and asked one of the men, “What’s he talking about?” The guy answered, “He hasn’t said yet.”  That is the problem....he never would say.  All he did was talk with enticing words.”

Let’s speak with God’s power, not man’s.

 

                                                                                                Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do: 

✞ Apply I Corinthians 2:4.

Prayer Words

Bible Reading:  Hosea 14

Key Verse: Verse 2 – “Take with you words, and turn to the LORD: say unto him, Take away all iniquity, and receive us graciously: so will we render the calves of our lips.”

Key Words: Take with you words

These words were spoken to the nation of Israel who had turned away from the Lord. So Hosea, inspired by the Holy Spirit, was encouraging them to pray to God and ask God to be gracious to them.

Attending church in Kentucky, we watched an especially verbal and boisterous child being hurried out, slung under his irate father’s arm. No one in the congregation so much as raised an eyebrow – until the child captured everyone’s attention by crying out in a charming Southern accent, “Ya’ll pray for me now!” ~ Jean McMahon, Reader’s Digest

Early African converts to Christianity were earnest and regular in private devotions. Each one reportedly had a separate spot in the thicket where he would pour out his heart to God. Over time the paths to these places became well worn. As a result, if one of these believers began to neglect prayer, it was soon apparent to the others. They would kindly remind the negligent one, “Brother, the grass grows on your path.”

~ Today in the Word

Let me encourage you to turn to the Lord and take with you words.

 

                                                                                            Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do:  

✞ Have you taken words to God today?

Corrupt Words

Bible Reading: Daniel 2:1-13

Key Verse: Verse 9 – “But if ye will not make known unto me the dream, there is but one decree for you: for ye have prepared lying and corrupt words to speak before me, till the time be changed: therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that ye can shew me the interpretation thereof.”

Key Words: corrupt words

The astrologers, sorcerers, and the Chaldeans could not tell the king what he had dreamed. The king knew they were stalling for time and knew whatever they said would be untrue. So he simply said, “Any words you share will be corrupt.”  The word corrupt means faulty, decaying, rotten.

Some years ago, I was making some hospital visits.  When I first got in the car I smelled a bit of a bad odor, but I gave it very little thought.  But after making several hospital calls, I noticed the odor was getting stronger and was becoming difficult to endure. I looked the car over, searching for where the odor might be coming from but with no success.  When I finally arrived back at the office, the odor had become unbearable. So rolling up my sleeves, I set out to find where this foul odor was coming from.  Just as I was about to give up, I saw a “sippy cup” lodged under the passenger front seat.  When I pulled the cup out, I immediately realized I had found my “odor” problem. Whatever was in the cup was now “green and growing.”  What a horrible smell!!  Now, while I had to endure the odor, I wasn’t the one with the odor nor was I the cause of the odor.  The corrupt sippy cup was the one that smelled and was the cause.

So it is with those who use corrupt words.  Their words send out a foul odor of lies and deceit, bitterness, and malice.  They may be hard to notice at first but the person with a corrupt mouth and corrupt words will eventually “stink up the place.”  So it was with the king’s soothsayers.

 

                                                                                    Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do:  

✞ Let God’s Word be your mouth freshener each morning.

Heeded Words

Bible Reading: Ecclesiastes 9:7-18

Key Verse: Verse 17 – “The words of wise men are heard in quiet more than the cry of him that ruleth among fools.”

Key Words: The words of wise men are heard in quiet

There are actually two truths in these few words.  The first truth is that wise counsel is mostly given in quiet or private.  Secondly, a wise person will heed wise words.

Speaking of heeding some good advice… here’s some!!

1. Business is made up of ambiguous victories and nebulous defeats. Claim them all as victories.

2. Keep track of what you do; someone is sure to ask.

3. Be comfortable around senior managers or learn to fake it.

4. Never bring your boss a problem without some solution. You are getting paid to think, not to whine.

5. Long hours don’t mean anything; results count, not effort.

6. Write down ideas; they get lost, like good pens.

7. Always arrive at work 30 minutes before your boss.

8. Be sure to sit at the conference table—never by the wall.

9. Help other people network for jobs. What goes around comes around.

10. Don’t take sick days—unless you are.

11. Assume no one can/will keep a secret.

12. The most successful people in business are interesting.

13. Sometimes you’ll be on a roll and everything will click; take maximum advantage. When the opposite is true, hold steady and wait it out.

14. Never in your life say, “It’s not my job.”

15 Understand the skills and abilities that set you apart. Whenever you have an opportunity, use them.

16. People remember the end of the project. As they say in boxing, “Always finish stronger than you start.”

 

                                                                                        Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do: 

✞ Heed the advice listed above.

Unheeded Words

Bible Reading: Ecclesiastes 7:8-21

Key Verse: Verse 21 – “Also take no heed unto all words that are spoken; lest thou hear thy servant curse thee:”

Key Words: take no heed unto all words that are spoken

Probably more words go unheeded than heeded.  We, for some reason, don’t like to hear “no” or “don’t” or “you shouldn’t” or “I wouldn’t.”

A tourist in Scotland some years ago, unacquainted with the nature of the coast, wandered along a path, which is only safe at low tide. Delighted with the seascape, he watched with admiration the huge waves breaking on the shore and gazed with awe at the precipitous rocks towering above him, and so entranced was he with his surroundings, he did not notice that the sea was gradually encroaching on his pathway. 

A native, observing the stranger from the lofty cliffs, descended as far as he was able with safety, and drew his attention by a loud "hulloo," and said: "If you pass this spot, you lose your last chance. The tide is rising, already the beach you have traveled is covered, and the waters are nearing the foot of the cliffs before you. By this path alone can you escape." 

The warning went unheeded, for the tourist thought he was able to make the turn in the road before the sea reached the cliff, but he misjudged the distance, and soon saw with alarm the danger of his position. He turned back, but alas, the sea had already cut off his way of escape. He looked at the cliffs, which were inaccessible, the waters were at his feet. He sought higher ground, but to no purpose. At last, a projecting rock was seen. He reached it but the relentless waves came on. They reached him inch by inch, until they reached his neck. He uttered one despairing cry for help, but none was near. The waters covered this victim of self-confidence. He neglected the warning and perished. 

"There is a time we know not when, 

A point we know not where, 

That marks the destiny of men 

For glory or despair."—Gospel Herald.

                                                                                             Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do: 

✞ We would be wise to heed good council from those who have traveled like paths.

No Words

Bible Reading: Ecclesiastes 3:1-11

Key Verse: Verse 7 – “A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;”

Key Words: a time to keep silence

Solomon said in Ecclesiastes 3:7 that there is a time to keep silence and a time to speak. Certainly there are different types of silence.  There is a foolish silence, a cowardly silence, and a resentful silence. Why, there is even a “get even” silence.  None of these are recommended. The one we heartily recommend is a prudent silence: a holy, gracious silence which the Scripture heartily recommends. If one does not practice this type of silence, he will speak injurious words and stir up strife (Proverbs 15:1). Harsh, uncontrolled language will be used (Proverbs 21:23).

Someone has listed six “misses” that can result: “miss” information, “miss” representation, “miss” quotation, “miss” interpretation, “miss” construction, and “miss” understanding. These result when we speak and should be silent. Never assume that you have all the facts or you will “miss up” everything.

Two ladies stood in disagreement. One was arguing vehemently and gesturing wildly while the other lady stood perfectly still, tranquil, and silent. Finally, the first woman shouted and stomped her foot and said, “Speak, so I can argue with you more!”

 We can quickly lose our testimony by speaking quickly and impulsively. Today, let’s ask the Holy Spirit to help us maintain a sensible silence.

                                                                            Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do: 

✞ Preach often and, if necessary, use words.

Say So Words

Bible Reading:  Psalm 107:1-9

Key Verse: Verse 2 – “Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy;”

Key Words: Let the redeemed of the Lord say so

There are two ways the tongue can be used incorrectly.  The first of these ways is known to all of us.  It is by speaking.  When our tongue is used as a tool of gossip, slander, cursing, or even idle talk, we misuse our tongue.  We are told in Psalm 39:1a, I said, I will take heed to my ways, that I sin not with my tongue.  The second way we use our tongue incorrectly is through silence, not speaking up when we should. Ezekiel warns us against the silence of the tongue in Ezekiel 3:18, When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.  If you saw your neighbor’s house on fire and you failed to warn your neighbor, you would be branded as a fool for the rest of your life.  Then what of those who we know are bound for an eternal fire? Should we not warn them as well; and if we fail to do so, what does that say about us?

I recently read the following story. “Two businessmen lived side by side in a suburb.  One was a professing Christian, and the other was an unbeliever. They both lived in the city and rode the same train to work each morning. Several years were spent each morning in neighborly conversation. One day the unbeliever became seriously ill. His doctor told him, “John, you are very sick. Would you like for me to call your pastor or someone who could help you spiritually?”  John shook his head and said, “No. There is nothing they can offer. My neighbor is a good Christian and for years we have ridden the same train together each morning and he has never mentioned salvation to me. If it is not worth living for then it’s probably not of any value in death either.”

Maybe we need to consider the word of the psalmist, David, Let the redeemed of the Lord say so.

                                                                                                 Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do:

✞ If you are redeemed, say so…live so!!

Loose Words

Bible Reading: Leviticus 19:1-16

Key Verse: Verse 16 – “Thou shalt not go up and down as a talebearer among thy people: neither shalt thou stand against the blood of thy neighbour: I am the LORD.”

Key Words: Thou shalt not go up and down as a talebearer

The Navy during World War II had a saying, “Loose lips sink ships.”  But even more important than that were those lives lost and people hurt because of someone’s loose words.  The average person cannot carry on an intelligent conversation.  Most conversation consists of gossip, talebearing, and murmuring. What a shame.  What a sin.

John Wesley wrote the following six guidelines for his talk and conversation. We would do well to apply them to our lives.

1. That I will not intentionally listen to or inquire after any ill concerning others.
2. That, if I do hear ill concerning others, I will not be in a hurry to believe it.
3. That I will get all of my facts before I render a decision.
4. That I will not write or speak a syllable of any ill to any other person other than the one whom it concerns.
5. That neither will I mention it to another person as to what I’ve done.
6. That I will not let gossip, talebearing and murmuring be named among my sins.

A woman who earned her living for more than 40 years by going about her neighborhood cleaning house for others was asked how it was she was so well-liked by everyone for whom she worked. She replied, “I make it a practice never to repeat what I hear with anyone.”  Amen!  Thou shalt not go up and down as a talebearer among thy people.

                                                                                            Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do:  

✞ Shhhh!!