James 3: 3-4
Words have power. With words, the earth was formed, the sick were healed, the dead were raised, and demons would flee. Our words have the power to create an atmosphere of either life or death (Prov.18:21) and reveal the secrets of our hearts and what is going on inside. Several years ago, a Japanese scientist named Masaru Emoto took two bowls of rice, with all of the same conditions except one. With one bowl he would speak with anger and hate, and the other he would speak with affection and love. For a period of several weeks he would repeat this process until by around day 20, the bowl that received hateful words was rotten, moldy and decayed, while the other began to ferment with a rather sweet aroma.
So often Christians will say harmful things, not believing or realizing the lasting effects that they have, and the realities that they have created with nothing but their words. If we repeat something over and over again, sooner or later we will begin to believe it as truth. God knew this and warned us over and over again about the effects that our speech and declarations have. Romans 12:2 says “Do not conform to the patterns of this world, but let God transform you by the renewing of your mind.” The most effective way of transforming the way we speak is to let God transform the way we think. You don’t have to watch what you say if you watch what you think.
It is no surprise that James draws a comparison of the tongue to a ship with its rudder, and a horse with a bit in its mouth. Both are extremely powerful and are capable of either great good, or devastating harm; but the one thing that controls the direction of their movement is such a seemingly unimportant member. The tongue, while being small and insignificant, can set the course for a life of building up, or a life that brings destruction to those around us. As believers, we are called to live a life that edifies and brings hope through the power of Jesus, the renewing of our minds, and the declarations we speak.
Photography: @alexandra_michon