A Look into James: Words

James 3:1-12 is a very interesting passage, with James using strong language at which to convey the seriousness of the topic. The tongue. Well, not just the tongue itself but words and so forth.

James 3:2, "For we all stumble in many ways. If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is mature, able also to control the whole body."

Our words are a reflection of everything about us. It affects everything about you... how you come across to others, your attitude, your personality... your relationship with the Lord or lack thereof.

James compares the tongue to a small fire setting a large forest ablaze, calls it a world of unrighteousness, full of deadly poison and a restless evil. It's serious. What we say matters and I think that often we forget that.

Words can produce life or death. 

The right words can make someone's day or tear them down farther than you thought possible. The thing about words is that we really don't have a clue how much it impacts people. You might say something that wouldn't cause any offense to you, but it could spark an insecurity in someone else. We should be careful in what we say... not tiptoeing around people, but speaking life over them.

I gotta be honest, I'm a naturally sarcastic person. Especially in the past, I've had a tendency to be sarcastic in the wrong moments and have gone too far. I'm working on that. I think the thing about sarcasm is that its often just unnecessary and if you're a sarcastic person too, I would suggest making sure you aren't going too far or making comments that could be taken across as hurtful.

James goes on to write in verse 10, "Blessings and cursing comes out of the same mouth. My brothers and sisters, these things should not be this way."

I like that verse. I don't even know fully why, but I do.  It shouldn't be this way. That phrase has been uttered since the fall of man. Sin has impacted our world, it broke our relationship with God. Things weren't meant to be this way.

Anyway, another thing about words is that words are an overflow of the heart. What you hear, surround yourself with, absorb.... it all effects you. Words are an overflow of that - for good or bad.

Galatians 5:16-17, "I say, then, walk by the Spirit and you will certainly not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is against the Spirit, and the Spirit desires what is against the flesh; these are opposed to each other, so that you don’t do what you want."

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Before I finish off I did want to mention one more topic: gossip.

Personally, I've never understood the appeal of blatant gossip. I'm not claiming to be perfect - far from it. I've just never understood why people purposefully tear others down. However, I do know how easy it is to get sucked into gossip. Often our words, our conversations with others, walk a line. Problem is, too often it falls over to the side of gossip.

Gossip does nothing more than hurt others and give yourself temporary satisfaction over them.

I think that's one reason why people do gossip. When you talk negatively about someone else, it makes yourself feel better. You think "at least I'm not as bad as so and so". That's such a dangerous perspective. Comparison draws you in and either destroys you or destroys the other.

Please realize how harmful gossip it. It spreads so quickly and people don't realize how much it effects others. If the only thing you hear about someone is something bad, you may assume the worst about the person, but the reality is you only know someone else's distorted view of them.

People think that gossip is the truth, but gossip is only someone's jaded perspective of another person.

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Okay, well, that was a much longer post than I expected. Anyway, my main point throughout this post is just to be aware of the impact your words have on others. I hope you choose to speak life.

So, as you go about your day, your week, I would love for you to think about this question:

Do my words reflect Christ and lift people up? Or are my words harmful and tear people down?



Galatians 5:25, "If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit."

A Look into James: Wisdom

According to dictionary.com, the word wisdom means "knowledge of what is true or right coupled with the judgment as to action; discernment".

I don't know about you, but the thought of wisdom has always been a strange concept to me. I typically think of King Solomon in the Old Testament and his wisdom. Or I'll think of wise sayings people write.

But the thing is, wisdom has been desired since the beginning of mankind.

Genesis 3:5-6, "“In fact, God knows that when you eat it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” The woman saw that the tree was good for food and delightful to look at, and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom. So she took some of its fruit and ate it; she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it."

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I also haven't ever really paid attention to learning about what wisdom means and what scripture says about it. But James talks quite a bit about wisdom in James 1:5-8 and James 3:13-18. I'm especially going to focus on the latter passage.

There are two types of wisdom: God's perfect wisdom from heaven and "wisdom" from this world. There's a distinct difference.

James 3:14-16 says,  "But if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your heart, don’t boast and deny the truth. Such wisdom does not come down from above but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where there is envy and selfish ambition, there is disorder and every evil practice."

So, worldly wisdom has a couple of ways to recognize it:

- It comes from bitter envy and selfish ambition.
- It's unspiritual and demonic.
- The result is disorder and every evil practice.

Those are very strong descriptions. The thing is, Satan is clever. After all, he's the father of lies. He has a way of making that wisdom looking good and desirable, as seen in Genesis 3:1-6. It can be easy at times to give into temptation, thinking that the wisdom isn't folly.

Okay, so what does God's wisdom look like?

James 3:17, " But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peace-loving, gentle, compliant, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without pretense."

It's pure, peace-loving, gentle, compliant, fully of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without pretense.

Reality is, God's wisdom is a lot different than our picture of wisdom.

Isaiah 55:8-9, "'For my thoughts are not your thoughts, and your ways are not my ways.' This is the Lord’s declaration. 'For as heaven is higher than earth, so my ways are higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.'"

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So, what does all of that mean for us today?

- Don't give into the wisdom of this world, it'll only lead you astray.
- If you are wondering what wisdom you're listening to, see what fruits your life is producing.
- James 1:5-6 talks about asking God for wisdom in faith.
- God's wisdom is perfect. We may not always understand, but He knows best.

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I just finished reading the book of James and several themes stuck out to me. This won't be a long series, but we'll be taking a look into James!

Anyway, I hope you have a great week! Is there a particular scripture about wisdom that sticks out to you?


Psalm 111:10, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow his instructions have good insight. His praise endures forever."

Every Moment Matters

I've tried to write a blog post so many times over the past few months. After my last post I honestly didn't think I'd post again. The words I wrote never felt right and I didn't feel like I had anything else to say.

Looking back, I know that's not true. I'm still a vessel for God to use, and writing is something I've used to glorify Him and I still want to do that through blogging. It just wasn't the right time when I tried before.

I'm at a weird stage of my life right now. It's a strange season of waiting and some struggling, yet hopefully growing in the process. 

I was reading in Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 today and there were several verses that stuck out to me, some of which I hadn't really noticed before.

Verse 2 "... a time to plant and a time to uproot;"

Verse 3 "a time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance;"

Other verses talk about a time to heal, a time to search and a time to count as lost, a time to be silent and a time to speak.

Every moment in our lives matters. Every season in our lives matter. And honestly? It doesn't always feel that way. Sometimes we feel like we're waiting for no reason, stuck in the in between. Or sometimes we feel like we're being tossed in the waves, struggling but not going anywhere.

But the truth is, everything has a purpose. We may not see it on this side of eternity, but it all matters in some way.

And we fail, we give into temptation, we sin, we doubt, we float in the waves and crash on the rocks sometimes. But we can get up and try again. 

We can't do this on our own. Life sucks sometimes and feels awful. Anxiety, moving from one place to another, depression, loss of loved ones, struggling in friendships, loneliness... we all feel some of these things at times or struggle with them. But God is always with us.

The other day I was flipping through the Psalms and read over Psalm 139. It's a pretty well known passage and often quoted. 

Psalm 139:9-10, "If I live at the eastern horizon or settle at the western limits, even there your hand will lead me; your right hand will hold onto me."

God is everywhere and He sees us. If you have a relationship with Jesus, He will lead you and guide you, He'll hold onto you. 

I gotta admit, sometimes - a lot of the time- it's hard to understand why God allows suffering to occur. We wonder and scream at the heavens why the world is so messed up and why He doesn't intervene. I don't have the answers, not really. I know that things happen for a reason, even if we can't always see the reason. I know that we live in a broken world and so many things happen as a result of that. And I know that no matter what God is good.

Psalm 136:1, "Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His faithful love endures forever."

A couple of main points to sum up this post:

• There's a time and season for everything. Every moment matters.
• We may not understand on this side of eternity and we don't have to have all the answers, though it's okay to ask questions.
• We need God every minute of every hour and He is always there, even if we don't always see it.
• God is still good no matter what. 

This season of my life right now? It's a time to uproot and a time to wait. It's a time of both weeping and laughter. It's a time of struggling and yet also a time for growth. It's hard to remember sometimes, but there is a purpose in it all. 

God has a plan, even if we don't see it at the moment,

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I don't know where this blogging thing is going to go. Maybe I'll post a couple more times or maybe I'll keep posting for years. What I do know is that I want to be available for God to use, for Him to speak through me.

Psalm 139:16 says, "Your eyes saw me when I was formless; all my days were written in your book and planned before a single one of them began."