Tag Archive for: James

String of Pearls

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Here are the 8 characteristics of Heavenly Wisdom, a beautiful string of pearls!

1.  It is pure!

“He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false.  He will receive blessing from the Lord and vindication from God his Savior.”  ~Psalm 24:4-5

2.  It is peace-loving!

“Great peace have they who love your law, and nothing can make them stumble.”  ~Psalm 119:165

3.  It is considerate!

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.  Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.”  ~Philippians 2:3-4

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The Good Life

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I am the vine; you are the branches.  If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. (John 15:5)

Goodness should be the highest object of human desire.  When we are at our best we will never want anything evil.  The good life is not some namby-pamby kind of existence, but is a life filled with joy and happiness because it shares the highest values.  The good life is possible for all of us.

A story is told about Daniel Webster.  During his days in the city of Washington the great statesman attended worship regularly in a little rural church outside the city.  Some of his colleagues were disturbed about it.  They said it lacked prestige.  And they asked him why he attended a little church in the sticks when he would be welcome in the most fashionable churches in Washington.

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Fresh Water

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With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness.  Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? My brothers, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water. (James 3:9-12)

I saw a great example of this passage of Scripture the other day when I was walking with a friend, let’s just call her “Charlie”.  Charlie has often mentioned the grace of God and all that she’s been given.  But on this particular walk, my friend decided to take the complaining route.  Charlie launched into a whole discussion about what she doesn’t have and how unfair it is.  Just as Charlie was getting to the tip of her feelings, we walked by a little boy crying.  This was great!  I turned to Charlie and said, “That’s how you sound to God right now!”  We both got a good laugh out of it and enjoyed the rest of our walk.

Unfortunately, many of us take the route of complaining and often sound like the little boy crying because his sister is beating him on a race with her bike.  We cry, we complain, and we crowd out the grace of God by our whining.  Our mouths are filled with fresh water and salt water on a daily basis.  We choose to daily surrender our desires and our hopes to the Lord.  We choose to be fresh water or salt water every day.

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A Rare Jewel

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In the same sense, the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it boasts of great things. See [by comparison] how great a forest is set on fire by a small spark! And the tongue is [in a sense] a fire, the very world of injustice and unrighteousness; the tongue is set among our members as that which contaminates the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our life [the cycle of man’s existence], and is itself set on fire by hell (Gehenna). (James 3:5-6)

What do a bit, rudder, spark, and tongue have in common?  Well, James 3 shows us that each is small but powerful and effective as a controller.  The bit in a horse’s mouth helps him obey his master.  The rudder on a ship is small but steers the boat wherever the captain wants it to go.  A small spark can start a forest fire.  And our tongue can set the whole course of our lives on fire, if we do not learn how to control it.

My tongue is definitely full of poison and has the power to start many forest fires in a day.  I tend to see that I have the power to stop a small forest fire or ignite it.  Every conversation is a new opportunity to breathe life or destroy life.  I want so badly to breathe life into others through my words.  I pray that every word I speak will come under the full authority of my Lord and Savior.

“A word aptly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.” (Proverbs 25:11)

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Tongue Tied

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For we all stumble and sin in many ways. If anyone does not stumble in what he says [never saying the wrong thing], he is a perfect man [fully developed in character, without serious flaws], able to bridle his whole body and rein in his entire nature [taming his human faults and weaknesses]. (James 3:2, AMP)

Let’s take a look at James 3 this week.  Please try to find time to read it, so that you can get even more out of the devotionals this week.

I will be giving you a daily verse with a picture.  Please feel free to choose one to memorize.  You are welcome to drag any picture to your desktop and use it as a tool to memorize Scripture.

Let’s talk about James 3:2…

“We all stumble in many ways.  If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to keep his whole body in check.”

This passage of Scripture hits the nail on the head.  We ALL stumble in many ways!  None of us has this down yet, but God continues to give us instructions on how to be better at this thing called life.  The tongue is the most difficult member of the body to control.  It wants to have it’s own way.  It often says things without thinking through them.  It is loose.  Let’s take time to train our tongues this week!

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