HOLY MUZZLE

The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart. Luke 6:45 (NAS)

The Bible speaks often about damage caused by careless words. In James 3:8, the tongue is described as a restless evil, full of deadly poison that no one can tame. The verse granted me no consolation as once again I combed over a thoughtless statement I had blurted out. Time and time again it seems I would find myself regretting something I said and wishing to retract it.
 
Continually I prayed for the Lord’s guidance in bridling my tongue. I confessed my transgressions and asked forgiveness from the Lord and others on many occasions.

While praying about this one day, it occurred to me that Paul might have left out an important piece of the armor of God described in the book of Ephesians 6:11. Certainly he should have included a Holy muzzle since it was well known we humans were helpless to control our tongues. I couldn’t believe this great Saint’s oversight. I began to add that piece to the armor during my prayer time.

It was not the supernatural cure I had hoped for. I still struggled with controlling my words.

Finally, while reading my Bible I came across the wisdom behind Paul’s exclusion of a muzzle. The uncontrolled tongue is not a mouth issue. It’s a heart problem. Our words come from the overflow of what is in our hearts. We must start there, in order to deal effectively with our dilemma.

Father, guard my heart with Your breastplate of righteousness so I don’t sin with my mouth. Amen.

©2016 Bonnie Mae Evans