A Forest Fire

November 12

Ezekiel 30-31

Psalm 119:161-168

Proverbs 27:9-10

James 3:1-12

A Forest Fire

“Behold how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire!  And the tongue is a fire, the very world of unrighteousness; the tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our existence, and is set on fire by Hell.  For every kind of beasts and birds, of reptiles and creatures of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by mankind.  But no one can tame the tongue; it is a restless evil and full of deadly poison.  With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God.  From the same mouth come blessing and cursing.  My brothers, these things ought not to be so.  Does a fountain pour forth from the same opening fresh and bitter water?  Can a fig tree, my brothers, produce olives, or a vine produce figs?  Nor can saltwater produce fresh.”  James 3:5b-12 LSB 

James compares the tongue to a fire that can burn down a whole forest.  Just a few weeks ago we watched on the news as the Palisades area of Los Angeles burned.  The wildfires spread quickly, burning thousands of acres of land.  Homes of the rich and famous burned alongside those of the middle class and the poor.  Fires don’t discriminate.  They burn everything in their path.  The damage that the tongue can cause is just as universal.  The rich and powerful are as susceptible to the pain and suffering caused by careless words as those with little material wealth.  Everyone understands that words have the power to slice through your heart like a knife causing emotional and relational scars that are harder to erase than stretch marks on the belly of a mom that has delivered twins.  Like a forest fire, one small spark, one careless word can ignite a flame that we can’t take back.  It can spread so fast we don’t even know what’s happening. Most of us can recall painful words spoken to us as a child or teenager.  It may have been thoughtless words by a parent, sibling, or someone who should have been looking out for us.  Or it may have been classmates who laughed at you or called you names.  Whatever the source, whenever you think about it, their words still have the power to make you wince. 

Most of us can also recall unkind, hurtful words that we have said to others.  It may have been in anger or as a response to something they said, but as soon as we said it we wished we could take it back.  The tongue is hard to tame.  In the heat of the moment words spew out revealing our thoughts that we didn’t want anyone to know. “The good man out of the good treasure in his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil.  For his mouth speaks forth from the abundance of his heart.” Luke 6:45 LSB  What is coming out of your mouth?  The moments when our tongues get us in trouble are excellent opportunities to evaluate our hearts.  Instead of making excuses, ask God to reveal anything in your heart that is not pleasing to Him and to help you change your heart.  Often, it takes moments like this to reveal attitudes, jealousy, hurt, and anger that we didn’t even know were there.