Set a watch, Lord, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips. Psalm 141:3
The largest and strongest bone in the human body is the femur, the upper leg or thigh bone. The amount of force and weight this bone can endure is incredible when compared with most other materials on earth. And yet, with all its strength and size, the femur is absolutely insignificant when compared to a relatively tiny, boneless part of the body known as the tongue, in terms of its ability to cause blessing or havoc. It is little wonder that David utters the prayer in today’s text for God to guard his mouth.
There is much of the profane world about us that our lips can so easily utter. But lips that are carefully guarded will not express such garbage, but will instead utter heavenly things. For example, instead of being occupied with rehearsing the latest news of the movie stars and fashion leaders of the world, we should be sharing the greatest news that can ever be told, the Gospel. Instead of the joking about the evil lifestyles and blatant sins that blight our society, we should be talking about the perfections of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Instead of the idle chatter and banter that we so easily slip into, we should be discussing Scripture and debating the great themes of the faith.
It is truly pathetic what we allow to escape from our lips sometimes. For example, as Christians, we belong to the One who cannot lie, and yet, we allow falsehoods to mar our speech. We belong to the holy spotless Lamb of God, yet we allow the innuendo and smutty sayings of the world’s gutter to trip off our tongues. We belong to the Almighty Who has guaranteed us not only eternal life but also His constant care, companionship and abundant provision, and yet we whimper and grouse about just about everything like we were disadvantaged and ill-treated.
Are we willing to let the Lord place a guard over our mouths? How wonderful if we spoke only those words that would bring Him glory! -Jim MacIntosh