I tend to be outspoken about issues that affect or impact my life. While teaching high school Bible for a decade, I lost my cool a couple of times. On one occasion I wrote a letter to the administration which got me in hot water with other teachers. Following this escapade, my good friend Spencer provided words of wisdom: “loose lips sink ships.” According to one of Jesus’ disciples, this is crucial to enjoying life and seeing good days ahead.
For let him who wants to enjoy life and see good days [good—whether apparent or not] keep his tongue free from evil and his lips from guile (treachery, deceit), 1 Peter 3:10.
My grandmother Joana always greeted me with the same corny phrase, “you’re such a good religious boy.” As a children raised in the Roman Catholic Church, I was taught to pursue the holy sacraments. From my first communion, years of CCD (Sunday School for Catholics), and completing the Confirmation process, I thought I was well on my way toward enjoying life and seeing good days. Boy was I wrong as if God was whispering, “not so fast.”
Even so the tongue is a little member, and it can boast of great things. See how much wood or how great a forest a tiny spark can set ablaze! 6 And the tongue is a fire. [The tongue is a] world of wickedness set among our members, contaminating and depraving the whole body and setting on fire the wheel of birth (the cycle of man’s nature), being itself ignited by hell (Gehenna), James 3:5-6.
While I knew all the right religious answers, my life was void of a personal relationship with God, Romans 10:9-10. Subsequently, I struggled through my first two years of high school with many unanswered questions. Thanks to a Fellowship of Christian Athletes group at Concord High and a local Methodist youth group, I started to run the race of faith, Hebrews 12:1-2. Although I’m nowhere near graduating from this spiritual adventure, I’m on the right path to clearing up my speech. As Christian’s mature, enjoying life and good days are slices of heaven on earth before the real party in the sky commences.
by Jay Mankus
ExpressYourself4Him 