I may sing praise to God above, then turn and curse by brother;
I may speak of an endless love, then say I hate another.
A broken heart I may mend, or break it half in two;
Encouragement I may send, or perhaps make fun of you.
I can start a fight, or I might promote peace;
I can be a light, or my darkness may increase.
A defender of the poor, or condemner of other men;
I may be an open door, or a vault no one can go in.
I can harbor resentment, or be quick to forgive;
The latter brings great contentment; the former’s no way to live.
I can be, oh so sweet, like honey from the comb,
But just like smelly feet, I can be rank to the bone.
Wisdom I impart, but idle gossip too,
Lies with me start, but I can speak what’s true.
I can be as clean as purest driven snow,
But other times it seems from me gross sewage flows.
One minute I curse, the next one I pray;
Which one may come first, who can know or say?
Fresh water and salty brine will not flow from the same creek.
And figs you’ll never find on olive tree, though you may seek.
The largest of ships can be turned with a tiny rudder and a wheel;
The greatest of forests can be burned with spark of flint and steel.
All the beasts that God has made can be tamed by man;
But my conversion can’t be swayed, no matter how he plans.
A world of evil sin, I’m two-faced as they come,
If they could keep me in, they’d be better off as dumb.
For words have awesome power for both great bad and greater good.
They can be sweet or sour; men should use them as they should.
But learn they never will, to keep in control,
For I cannot be still for silver or for gold.
But to keep the Word of Christ fore front in their mind,
I’ll have a fruitful life and my evil side will bind.
So, who am I my friend? Tell me if you know,
I promise to keep quiet, but you know that isn’t so!
Tertius
Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from telling lies.
Psalm 34:13
You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good?
For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.
Matthew 12:34
A note about “The Stranger Under My Roof”: Jeremiah 17:9 says the heart is deceitful above all things. This means we don’t know it. In Matthew 15:18 Jesus said the things that come out of the mouth comes from the heart. So, in essence this important part of our body is a stranger to us. It has the capacity to do so much good and express love and at the same time holds a world full of evil. Sometimes it goes off like a gun with a hair trigger. Trouble is when its evil escapes, you can’t put it back. Jesus said He will hold us accountable for every word that leaves our mouth. It would seem we should be better off keeping our mouth shut. But at the same time the Bible tells us that to withhold good is evil in itself. Philippians 4:8 says whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. May this also be a guide for our tongue.