shut yo mouth

in my infamously despicable youth i had a pretty big mouth. if you think i have a big mouth now, you have no idea. there was minimal to no discretion used and most of the things i said were hurtful, unnecessary, and utter nonsense. this was mostly due to my desire to be loved, a generally sinful heart, and a strange habit i developed of listening to a lot of crap on talk radio. my actions changed in high school when i started reading through the book of Proverbs. i constantly came across verses like, “All the utterances of my mouth are in righteousness; There is nothing crooked or perverted in them.” and, “With his mouth the godless man destroys his neighbor, But through knowledge the righteous will be delivered.” i highlighted these kinds of verses in blue…there is a lot of blue throughout the proverbs, let me tell you.

despite the difference in my life after i confessed my sins to the Holy Spirit (and to some specific people), the temptation to open my mouth has continued. i gossip and put others down in order to pull myself up. i am unnecessarily sarcastic and rude. i feel a certain sickness in my stomach, even as the words are coming out of my mouth. and the foul aftertaste of words spoken will often linger for weeks after i’ve said something particularly stupid. i am annoyed when i see it in other people, and yet i do it myself. the phrase, “Those who know don’t talk, and those who talk don’t know” certainly does seem to be true. like that kid in your political science class who only talks to seem smart, not in an effort to really share or learn anything. who wants to be that guy?

anyway, i’m thinking about these things again. the temptation to do the wrong thing does not often ever completely disappear. oh how i loathe sin! Jesus was falsely accused at His “trial” and said nothing, “What new mystery is this? What blessed backwardness? The Immeasurable One is held and does not resist! Struck by wicked words and foolishness of senseless men, the Almighty One does not defend!”. what if i could just shut my mouth? and the temptation to say anything but wisdom and His truth would leave me. wouldn’t it be glorious?

i’m so glad that, “No clever talk, nor gift to bring, requires our lowly lovely King”.